Pokémon: Zen's adventures
by C.Lawton
Summary: Meet Zen. A typical kid in a world of anything but normal creatures. Along with him, his friends, and his enemies, you'll experience their journey through the Johto region. You'll stumble across various pokémon, various characters and several twists. These tales are about dedication, hopes and dreams, and above all, friendship. Please review, I welcome advice (:
1. Zen of Newbark

Throughout my entire life, I had dreamed of becoming a pokémon trainer.

It sounds so cliché, to think that there were a billion other kids out there all wishing, wanting the same thing.

But I wanted it more.

I should have become one when I was fourteen.  
I remember waking up early, brushing off my morning face and practically sprinting to the Lab to pick a pokémon. I didn't even say goodbye to my parents, a quick glance at them sufficed.

And then of course, I was walking through the Lab doors, straight to the Prof and I asked for a pokémon.  
I remember him looking at me, his face scratched with worry lines and his eyes watery.

And he said those words.  
(How can words hurt so much?)

_"The machine is broken. Chances are you won't be getting one for a while, kid."_

And that was it…

Of course, where are my manners?  
My name is Zen. I am Seventeen and a half years old. My hair is the colour of mud. So are my eyes.

I am basically the most normal kid in this stupid town.

I live in the Johto region of this planet. Except I hardly know any of it.  
The only place I've ever travelled to is Azalea Town and that's only become I have cousins there.

You could say I'm a bit of an unprivileged kid…

I live in New Bark Town and I have done ever since I was born. I was literally born two minutes down the road, and I guess I just remained put by fate. By chance.  
New Bark is small and inhabited by about fifty residents (I've dubbed them the 'Famous Fifty') and they all know each other like they're related. As with most people, there are certain divides. Arguments that have collected dust are still fresh in the mind, but it's a small town. What else is there to do than to argue? It passes the time.  
I'll introduce a few of these fifty.

- Farrow; an old man who only has one eye because, as he puts it _"A damn't Spearow swooped down and damn plucked it clean outta it's socket." _Every day without fail he wears an eye-patch. His phobia of bird pokémon actually grows every stronger and more ludicrous by the day, so much so that he caught his one and only pokémon, a Magnemite, to protect him from them on a daily basis. He's had it for nearly seven years and has never had any trouble since.

- Jenna; probably one of the nicest and most easy going people in New Bark, she is the town baker and pokémon breeder. She was actually the first person to introduce me to pokémon and so followed the infamous incident involving me and an 'affectionate' Spinarak. I'll tell you about that later…

-Felix; a jerk who lives opposite me. He's my age but he has striking yellow hair and an attitude.  
He already has four pokémon but I refuse to count Magikarp as a valid pokémon. Every evening when he takes his team out for training, I see that stupid orange fish flopping hopelessly about on the ground while Felix yells at it to 'change.' I have no idea what he's expecting to happen but I really hope I'm there if something does.

-Likua; the local legend, she has lived in New Bark town for 67 years and has earned the title of the 'Barking Witch.' This is because she owns two Houndours who, every morning without fail, howl at 5.30am, waking most of the town up. Several votes have been cast and rejected at somehow silencing the two pokémon but no one has yet stepped forward to take independent action, probably out of fear of getting their face burnt off. She is disliked by many but I actually quite take to her, she's always smiling and I rarely see her arguing with anyone. Perhaps she's too old for it…

Yeah, I live in a weird town.

But every winter, it snows without fail and we usually hold a giant bonfire in the town square.  
I guess it's the one time we can all come together without resentment. It's magical, what a bit of snow and a giant fire can do to people.

I live with my mother and that's it. I'm all she has.  
My father joined some 'bad gang' when I was fifteen and that's all I know about it.

It was hard to deal with and to be honest; I'm not truly over it. But I guess life goes on.  
The less we speak about him the better.

My best friend is called Zoya and she lives next door to me.  
Of course, she's already got her first pokémon, an Eevee, because her parents are rich.  
Her father mines nuggets and her mother is regarded of somewhat of a 'fashion queen.'

She works overseas a lot, in the Kanto region dressing pokémon for a living.  
Personally, I couldn't think of a more unappealing job but I guess it brings the money in.

And there's the Prof.

No-one knows his full name and quite frankly, I'd be damned if he hasn't forgotten it himself by now.

To put it bluntly, he's a drunk.

Before he arrived, there was another professor who was revered for his skills in the pokémon world.  
We as a town felt almost too lucky for having him just around the corner.

His name was Professor Elm and he was one of the greatest men I'd ever met.

We'd usually find him strolling along with an exotic pokémon in tow beside him.

I remember gawping out of my window as he walked by, dressed in his lab whites with some magnificent beast alongside him.  
I had no idea what it was called but it looked like a giant orange dragon and it had a beige underbelly. Its wings looked like parchment and its eyes were black as coals.

However, it possessed a delicate air and despite its intimidating appearance I almost felt like if I came face to face to it, I wouldn't be as scared as its appearance threatened.

Every now and then it would shoot a jet of ice and freeze everything in its vicinity.

It was almost like magic.

He would just casually walk on unfazed and wave to passers by before disappearing back into his laboratory.

But of course, all good things must come to an end and he ended up packing his bags and moving overseas to a place called Saffron City. We haven't heard from him since. 

Then we got the other Prof.

Please give a round of applause to him. He's the one who messed this entire thing up.

Everything would have been so much easier if he just hadn't been involved.

But he gave me the kickstart I needed.

So I guess this is where my story begins.

Care to come on my adventure?


	2. The Prof

It just so happens that this part of the story begins and ends with me standing.  
You may be thinking 'Yeah, so what?'

Well, I wish I thought like that.

I really do.

I always presumed that my journey would have been easy.  
I wished the same as any other kid about becoming the 'master.'  
I heard about countless others. The _legends_.

And of course, there was the original, Ash Ketchum. He was always the most talked about. But then apparently he just disappeared.

I think he's still out there.

He has to be. He was the master. He still is the master.

Unlike the Prof. He was a completely different kettle of fish.

He was a shell of his former self. You could tell.  
You could also tell from his appearance that his life had left many footprints on his face.

Heel marks were stubbed into his cheeks. Angry shoeprints scarred his chin.  
His eyes were scratched and his skin was stretched.

His face was gaunt; cheekbones grasping at air. His overall appearance seemed one of complete exhaustion yet he walked in a rushed pace.  
Always muttering, fingers twiddling.

He was a paradox. Ran like clockwork but looked like an overworked clock.  
Nuts and bolts missing. Obvious flaws.

But still somehow ticking away.

His hair was grey, his eyes were brown and his fingers were finger coloured.  
They were flecked with the world and experiences.  
As was his mind.

His Lab was a fine example of that. It was a magnificent building.

In essence, it was the heart of the town.

A giant spherical building hoisted into the air and supported by giant glass beams, it almost looked like it was floating if you viewed it from a distance.

It was completely white which I can't understand. It was spotless all the time; there wasn't a mark on it.  
Which, when looking at the dishevelled appearance of the Prof, almost begs belief.

It had several symmetrical access stairways leading down from it, which would change colour as soon as you stepped on them.  
They supposedly picked up on your mood.

If you were angry, they would glow a brilliant cherry red.  
If you were relaxed, they would shine a subtle soft yellow.  
Even if you were nauseous, they would adapt and change into a swampy colour of green.

It was beautifully unique.

Surrounding the Lab was a giant circular lake, complete with exotic water lilies and water fountains.  
It was supposedly filled with water pokémon but fishing was strictly forbidden.

Rumour has it that one time; a fisherman broke the rules and fished there in the dead of night.  
The result was him hooking an alarmed Tentacool, which I've heard looks a blue jellyfish-like pokémon.

It promptly wrapped him up its tentacles and didn't let him go until morning, where upon he was found, arrested and sent to do community work at a nearby Day Care Centre.

But despite its impressive appearance, the Lab was built in controversial circumstances.

Unlike Prof. Elm's, which was modest in size and pretty ordinary looking, the new Lab was a spectacle and some spectacle at that.

It was amazing in both size and look.

And this scared the people of New Bark.

It took several meetings and votes for the build to get the go-ahead and even then, there was an air of suspicion about it. People talked about the meeting being rigged but nevertheless, the build took place.

And it worked. It was the hub of the town, and essentially placed us on the map.  
People would travel from everywhere to see it and it made out town quite a bit of money.

Every night, it would glow a different colour and the circular shape would depict a face of different pokémon.  
I remember as nine year old looking out of my bedroom window and seeing all sorts of unusual creatures that I didn't even know existed.  
They didn't look real.

It messed with my sleep pattern, my head and my ambition to succeed in the world.

In a way, it was addictive torture.

So when the day came to get my first pokémon, I couldn't be more excited.

I remember climbing the stairs (which were fighting between nervous oranges and excited blues), but almost in a dreamlike state.

You know, where you want to run but you feel like you're sprinting in quicksand?

I remember knocking on the door of his lab and expecting the Prof. to open the door with a huge smile and a pokéball in his hand.

I expected too much.

He didn't answer. Well, he didn't until I continuously pounded on his door.  
While I was heating his door with my first, he was probably waking up.  
No one can be _that_ moody if they've been awake for a while.

He finally opened his door and we chatted for a bit.

* A snippet of our chat *

_Prof: "You better have a feckin' good excuse for knocking so many times!"  
Me:"I-"  
Prof: "Do you know what happened the last time someone almost battered my door down!?"  
Me: "No, but I-"  
Prof: "No! And I bet you don't want to find out do you!?"  
Me: "Well no, but-"  
Prof: "But NOTHING! That's it! Nothing! Now feck off!"_

__You should have heard him before then.  
I stood there and tasted five minutes of swearing and verbal abuse.

It tasted almost metallic.

The door was slammed in my face. And to think, I was only fourteen.

I stared at that door for a good few minutes before swallowing down the lump that had formed in my throat, breathing in my sliced disappointed and attempting to walk home.

Pshh, some attempt Zen...

I couldn't even turn around.

It was only when the Prof. opened the door again that I snapped into life.  
And he was wearing a lopsided smile.

And for the first time, I felt relieved. It was almost like a joke. A test of character.  
I thought he would say something like, "W_ell done boy, you've passed the test! Sorry for shouting, I had to see if you could take it because believe me the world of Pokémon is far trickier than you could ever imagine! Come inside for a bite to eat and we'll sort you out with a pokémo-."_

I say this of course, until something appeared between his feet.

Like, just appeared. I can't explain it any clearer.

It was a pokémon, nearly entirely gold in colour, except for its shoulder parts which were a dark oaky shade of brown.

It almost looked like a fox except it had arms and legs, hands and feet and an almost human character. It sat like a human too, slouched in a lackadaisical manner.

Both of its eyes were firmly closed, yet it looked up at me and I almost felt like it was searching my mind.

I was transfixed.

So much so, I only just heard the Prof. mutter '_teleport'_ and the next thing I knew, the thing had raised its hand, stretched out its three fingers and remained entirely still.

I continued to stare at it, intrigued, until I blinked.

And I was no longer looking at it.

I was looking at a floor.  
And then it struck me. I was standing, in the exact same position.

Except I was no longer outside the Lab.

I was very much i_nside_ of our local Pokémon Centre...


	3. Finding Susii

I guess it's always a little crazy when you consider the world I live in.  
I thought it was impossible. And yet I knew it was real…

Negates the principle surely?

Let me throw you back into where we were.

I stared at the nurse behind the counter and she stared back.

It was like time was frozen. Her mouth was stuck open and her eyes wanted to look away but they couldn't. My mouth on the other hand, was dry and my eyes _couldn't_ move.

I must have stood there for a good five minutes, rooted to the tiled floor and breathing in air that smelt like medicine. It was only when I managed to move that the world sped up around me.  
I was put on fast-forward and before I knew it, I was out of the door and trying not to throw up outside.

"What… What was that?" I couldn't figure it out. My voice was sliced, exposed.  
"How…" Again, I couldn't answer myself. My brain felt slow, numbed. All I thought about was the damn thing and how in a split second, it had lurched me across town without so much of an effort.

It was scary. But it was awesome. How? How could it do that?

It was only when I was lying on my bed later on in the day, staring listlessly at the ceiling and flicking when I realised I didn't care.  
But I was still overwhelmed with the experience. Pokémon were far more powerful than I had imagined.

I knew what I had to do. I had to get my own.

I couldn't stick around waiting for the Prof. to sweeten up.

Besides, he's as bitter as he smells.

I woke up the next day nervous. The ceiling glared at me as soon as I eyed it.  
I stuck a foot out from under the covers and the air grabbed it. Twisted it. Warning me.  
My breakfast tasted like cardboard, my legs were wooden and brain was screaming at me. But I had to do this. It was destiny.

I decided that because I was still kicking around the house (you can't work until you're 15), I would have no problem in persuading my mother to let me go for a 'walk.'  
I walked downstairs and she was watching drossy daytime shows on the TV. I approached her and from my look, she must have thought something was up. I told her I was going out.

She asked me where she was going.

I said to see Mr. Farrow.

-The awkwardness of lying-  
_"Why are you going to see Mr. Farrow?"  
"Because his pokémon has learnt a new move, he wants to show me."  
"What move?"  
"Electro…zap"  
"Oh really? Is that even a move?"  
"Yeah." _10 seconds passed. "_Okay see ya!"  
"Wait, Ze-!"_

I rushed out of the room, through the door and didn't stop running until I reached the gate bordering the entrance into New Bark. It wasn't very long; we live in a small town.

-the journey-

Out the door, turn right, turn left, another left, run forward, cut left down a side alley near the pokémart and carry on running forward. Simple.

The border gate was a sight indeed. It was two wooden beams scratched with thousands of names, all aspiring pokémon trainers of the past, who like me, were determined to get somewhere. On top was a giant wooden sign with the faded script of NEW BARK TOWN choking under the faded veneer.  
Traditionally, pokémon trainers have to leave their mark on their home town. In Aezela Town, they scratch their names into a giant oak tree in the forest that leads to the next town. Because we have no such forest, we have the beams.

-some of the names on the beams-

Olik; he was a boy who specialised in rock pokémon. The name scratched into the gates was long and blunt, probably like his personality. He mastered a giant rock snake at the age of sixteen and crushed several Gym Leaders. Like, this pokémon was huge. I'd seen a picture in a book and it towered over everything. Filled the page. How he could even have the guts to attempt to control it surpasses me. Rumour had it that the thing eventually evolved into something even scarier. I can't imagine what.

Kiiara; a psychic pokémon trainer, who was known for her fierce attitude and sass. Her scratch was twirly and script-like. Flamboyant. She used to hunt pokémon thieves with her pokémon, which created mirages so scary, some of the thieves committed suicide just to escape them. She lives in Saffron City, along with Prof. Elm.

Lokra; probably the most important of the names, this girl caught a dragon pokémon by accident at the age of six. The story goes that she was playing with a pokéball by the river on a family picnic, threw it in the water and caught a giant water serpent called Dragonair. The odds of doing it were a zillion to one and her parents moved her away not long after it happened. Her scrawl was a backwards 'L'. But what really was noticeable was how far the scratch went. It was bore in so far, it must have been millimetres from piercing the wooden beam completely so you could see out the other side.

I used to look at the names when I was younger, wishing to scratch my name on and join them.

But something always stopped me…

I looked out of the gates, into a field of high grass, taller than the beams themselves.  
Each blade was kissed by the wind, whipping softly right and left, blind.

I took a few nervous steps into the field, my breath caught in my throat. Nothing yet.

I started to run.  
My eyes were trapped open, sweat glued to my face. My heartbeat was wrestling with my ribcage.

Each step further was another step closer to-

"_OH HEYYYY_!"  
I screamed and whipped around, fists raised in preparation. I expected to see a pokémon in front of me.

I saw the opposite.

It was a girl.  
Wait, a_ girl_? Why was she here?

"Sorry, did I scare you? Maybe you should relax a bit, saves you looking like a total girl." She threw the sentence at me and it knocked me out.  
I was speechless.

I tried to claw back the scream and breath but I was spooked. My heart had won the fight, I felt like I was bleeding adrenalin from every pore.

She, however, had a huge grin on her face.

"What's your name?" She asked excitably. Her eyes sparkled. She almost looked high.

"My name's Zen", I choked back. I coughed and became very aware that the scream had nearly ripped my voice from my throat completely.

"Zen?" She pondered the sentence. Chewed it. And spat it out with her next line. Along with her grin.

"Pfft, what kind of a name is Zen?"

Ouch.

"Oh yeah?" I retorted, irritated at this random stranger who had disturbed my quest. "What's yours?"

She grinned again. "My name's Susii."

"Susii?" I fought back a smirk. "And you think _my_ name's weird?"

"Well, yeah a bit". She scuffed her feet on the ground and looked at me again.

She was cute, I'll give her that. She had long black hair, wavy in places and straight in other.  
Like it was partially ironed. Her smile was big and her teeth perfect.  
She wore an oversized sweater, with weird blue and white pattern on it. Leggings to match.  
White sneakers to finish the look. Around her shoulder was a satchel stuffed with pokéballs. I had no clue if they were empty or not.

But what really stood out were her eyes. They were a rich chocolate colour. Big and owl-like, I felt like I couldn't stop staring at them. Which kind of didn't help seeing as I was meant to be irritated with her.  
I think she knew this too, because she bit her bottom look and flicked her eyes to the ground.

I hoped she didn't see me flush.

"So, are you a trainer?" She asked. Her eyes searched me for a satchel or pokéball. I suddenly realised I was standing awkwardly with my fists still out and shoved them into my pockets. A smile dabbed at her lips.

"Not exactly, I'm kinda hoping to catch one now," I replied. Her eyes lit up.

"Can I help you!?" She practically shouted at me, and her big eyes were on mine again.  
I went even redder. "Well yeah I guess…" I tailed off lamely.

"Sweet," she shouted. "Well, let's get on it then!"

She grabbed my hand and yanked me through the grass, causing me to trip and almost faceplanted. She looked back over her shoulder and giggled, flashing her brilliant teeth again before pulling me further into the field.

It certainly was a ride. Every now and then, a branch would appear out of nowhere and trip me, leaving us both sprawled on the ground.

"I think we should stop here", she said, after the ninth time I accidentally tackled her.  
I could only agree.

We sat down and looked at each other.  
Her cheeks were slightly pink, probably from falling down so much. Or they were wind-kissed.  
Either way, she still looked stunning.

"Take a picture, faggot."

And sassy.  
Nothing wrong with that I guess.

I was just about to throw a comeback at her when from out of nowhere, we heard a rustling.

"Oh my god Zen, look!" Susii screamed, beside herself. "It's a wild pokémon!"  
I could only look at her, bewildered how someone could be so crazy. Until I saw it.

It was a pokémon, there was denying it.

I was just about to ask when Susii theatrically thrust a red contraption at me and it mechanically screamed at me what the creature was.

_"Mareep, the electric sheep pokémon. If static electricity builds in its body, its fleece doubles in volume. Touching it will shock you_."

It was a quirky little creature. A four legged ball of white wool that emitted a crackle whenever it moved, it had a blue neck and head and legs. Protruding from the side of its head were two small stripy black and yellow cones. Its tail was the same stripy colour and on the end of it was a small circular yellow bulb. It wasn't breath taking but it was the first pokémon I had seen in the wild and I had to have it.  
I whirled around to Susii. "Listen Susii, I nee-"  
"Zen, you haven't even got a pokémon!" she screeched, running up and down on the spot.  
"I know! I need you to catch it for me!"  
"Wha- why me?" She looked at me like I was crazy person.  
"Because!", I shouted, exasperated, "I haven't even got a pokéball for crying out loud! I'm totally unprepared!"

She looked sideward at me and giggled before reaching into her satchel and pulling out a pokéball. Trussing her hair back, she threw the ball at the Mareep, which was lying down lazily, looking at us.  
"Geodude, let's do this!"

The ball dropped to ground and on impact, exploded with a flash. I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again to see a giant rock pokémon in front of me. It looked like a giant boulder but possessed thick rocky arms and fists, and an angry expression. Grass sprouted from its body and it roared before smacking its fists together, causing the ground to shake and the Mareep to jump to its feet, startled.

I stood a little behind Susii when it looked at me.  
She however, twirled around and shouted, "Geodude, rock throw!"

I looked on amazement as the Geodude thrust it's wrists into the ground as if it was made of water and pulled out two giant gravel boulders. It roared again before throwing them at Mareep who was engulfed in static electricity. The Mareep squealed and threw a lump of electric energy at Geodude but it fizzled into nothing on contact. The rocks however, didn't.

The Mareep met the rocks head on and a great whirlwind of dirt blasted up around it. I threw my face into the back of Susii's hair as a thick cloud of soil, stones and grass blasted me. The smell of coconut filled my nostrils as I inadvertently sniffed her hair.  
Once the dust settled, I peeked around her shoulder and saw the Mareep lying on the floor, unconscious.

Susii giggled and looked at me before handing me a pokéball. It was cold, coloured red and white with a tiny white disc in the centre. "Go on then, you girl", she laughed. "Catch it."

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "You what?"  
"Catch it!", she shouted, grinning. I turned and faced the Mareep.

"Go pokéball!" I screamed. Out the corner of my eye, I saw Susii raise one eyebrow and shake her head.  
The ball hit Mareep and opened up, before emitting a blinding flash of light and sucking the pokémon into it.  
It dropped to the floor and slowly shook…


	4. Catching static

"I can't believe you caught it"  
"…What, are you actually impressed with my catching style?"

"No. I have a Geodude and now you have a cute little Mareep… You can tell who's going to wear the trousers in this whole thing."

"Shut u-…. Wait, what thing?"  
"Come on, catch up! It's getting dark."  
"What thi-"  
"-Come on!"

We stood at my doorstep, an awkward silence draped over us.  
"I would invite you in," I started, glancing at my window. Inside, my mum was watching TV, her head propped up on a kitchen glove-donned hand. "But-  
- It's fine Zen, I'm sorted anyway."  
Susii smiled at me. "Thanks though." I nodded.  
She turned on her heel and started trudging back towards the New Bark gate.  
"Susii," I called. She turned. "Where are you stayi-  
- See you tomorrow Zen!"  
_Tomorrow?_

I sat on my bed later that night staring at the pokéball. It was still cold against my hand, almost slippery. It shone in the moonlight that sliced through my window.  
I couldn't believe it, that something was inside there.

Something that was mine. Part of me. My life. My future.

- What I was thinking at the time -  
_I'm only 14. Screw the Prof. and his little fox thing._  
_I caught a Mareep. And now it's in my hand. And I'm scared..._

I woke up the next morning with the ball still in my hand. It still felt cold against my skin, and yet the covers were warmly pressed into my body. I stuck a toe out, and moaned when it tingled. It was a cold one today. The morning sun broke through my bedroom window, heatless and bright, and the ball sparkled as it was dressed in light. I yawned and sat up groggily.  
"Right you," I muttered. "Let's have you."  
I sat upright on my bed, the pokéball clenched in my hand. And threw it at the wall.

It smacked off it with a thwack and landed at my feel, rolling ever so slightly on the spot.

"You're not very good at this"  
The voice in the corner made me jolt upright and I swiveled around to see Susii leaning against my bedroom door, her trademark sarky grin slapped on her face.

"What the _fu-_"  
"Oh shh", Susii interjected, still grinning. Causally strolling into my room, she sat down next to me and looked at me with her giant eyes.  
"Listen, you need to learn how to release the pokémon."  
"How the hell did you get into my room?"  
She smiled again and bit her lip, "Trainers can adapt their throwing style but you can't just throw it without saying anything, _moron_."  
"Susii, how did you get into my room?"  
"You can use anything from a flick of a wrist or a spinny-round lob, just as long as you have a release catchphrase."  
"How did you ge-"  
"-I used my legs, does that answer your stupid question?"  
"… I guess?"

She laughed and turned to face me, lightly resting her hand on the corner of my leg. "Besides," she whispered, her grin widening devilishly. "Your mum isn't in." I tried not to blush and continued to glare at her, very conscious that we both knew I was mostly naked.  
"You and Mareep need to get a catchphrase that you're both happy with", she said, catching a yawn. "I can't believe you haven't been taught this."  
"Well, excuse me for being new at this. If I knew what I was doing, I would have left by now and would probably travelling to every place in the world, being the best trainer aro-"  
"Just _stop_ talking", she shouted, before jumping up. "Come on, I'm going to take you training."  
I smothered a smile. "You?"  
"Yes, me," she pouted. "And you wouldn't want to upset me would you?"  
"I guess not?" – I wouldn't have wanted to risk it anyway, I had come to realise, albeit begrudgingly, I enjoyed her company, even if she was completely nutd.

"Exactly!", she shouted, grinning at the way I jumped again. "Now, come on. Get dressed, grab your pokéball and meet me downstairs in ten minutes."

"So, where do you live?" We were walking towards the same patch of grass we caught Mareep in. Susii said it makes sense because you train in the place you catch. I couldn't argue with that.  
"I…don't."  
"You don't!? What do you mean?" I looked at her quizzically.  
"Well", she started, sighing. "I lived in Azalea Town for a little while but I got bored of the place. So I left."  
"Just like that?"  
"Well yeah, my parent's were upset of course but this world is too big not to explore, you know what I mean?"  
"I guess…"  
"You need to learn to say something else to questions you know that?" she looked at my, her sarcastic grin glued back on her lips.  
I glowered at them. "What, like you need to stop interrupti-"  
"-Shut up, we're here!"

We walked through the posts and I tapped the wood softly as I passed them.  
She looked at me with an odd look on her face before flicking her eyes ahead to the grass.

"Now what, your lordship?"  
She smiled at me and flicked me off. "We wait."

We made a small hole in the grass and sat down for a good couple of hours, talking.

- An excerpt of our enthralling conversation-

_"So what made you want to be a trainer?"_  
_I have no clue," she said. "I tend to go with the flow y'know? I never stick to the rules really and it's worked out so far. And I'm still young; I know I still have so much to experience."_  
_"Yeah…"_  
_"So tell me, why are you such a girl?"_  
_I scowled at her. "Are you ever serious Susii?"_

We sat some more and talked some more but we weren't really listening to each other. The wind shyly kissed us both, and the smell of fresh grass teased our senses. The grass provided us with both a windshield and privacy. We were in our own natural cell, and we were both waiting.  
Focused on finding a pokémon.

Three hours and seventeen hours of sitting and talking later, we struck gold.

"Zen loooook!" Susii screamed joyously, beside herself.  
I looked up, after trying to collect myself from a mini heart attack before seeing a pokémon flutter down into a tree a couple of metres away. I looked at up at Susii who had already started to run off towards the tree.

"Susii, wait a min-  
"-Zen, come _on_!"

I ran after her.

We both craned up to look at the pokémon in tree. It was a bird, coloured brown and with prominent beige ruffled underbelly. Behind back eye sockets, brilliant-white slanted eyes peered suspiciously down at us.

"Right, Zen. Here's the first lesson", said Susii, looking at me seriously. I nodded at her for continue.  
Her eyes flicked away from me at a minute to my hands. She gritted her teeth. "Zen, where's your pokéball?"  
I gasped. Turning on a heel, I started sprinting back to town to retrieve it, ignoring Susii's facepalm.

I was lucky to see the pokémon hadn't moved an inch when I got back. I looked dumbly at Susii who, like me, held a pokéball. "Right, are you ready?"  
"Wait, of course I'm no-"

"GO SLOWPOKE!"  
She threw the ball and it erupted with a loud metallic sound and blinding flash, knocking me over.  
In its place was a weird little pokémon that I couldn't stop staring at. It looked like a pink platypus, docile in appearance with two blunt teeth protruding from it's bottom jaw. Its tail was tipped white. Its wide eyes looked at me, uninterested.  
"What the _hell _is that!?" I cried hoarsely, still spread-eagled on the ground. Susii laughed.  
"It's super _cute_ is what it is!" she shouted joyously before twirling around to look at the pokémon in the tree.

"Right Slowpoke, let's K.O this Pidgey!" she screeched pointed her finger at the tree. I could help but hopelessly love her dramatic side. I scuffled to my feet before gripping my pokéball and holding it out in front of me, eyes focused on the tree. Susii looked at me and nodded eagerly.

"Um…Come on out Mareep!" I screamed before throwing the ball at the tree.  
The ball smacked against the tree before twisting in mid-air, slicing the air with crackling static and blowing open. In its place, stood Mareep.

It looked at me, before lazily stretching and plonking itself down in front of me.  
I looked at it back, before pointing at it and then at the tree desperately. "Come on, get it!" I shouted. Susii slowly facepalmed. I glared at her embarrassed.  
"What!?"  
"Pick a move?"  
"What?"  
"A move. Like something it can use?"  
"How am I supposed to know what the hell it does, I haven't even seen it more than five times yet!"  
"Well, it's electric."  
"So?"  
"Do I have to spell it out for you Zen? Use an electric move like Thundershock or something! Jeeeeez!"

I pondered for a minute before a lightbulb clicked in my head.  
"Mareep, use Quick Attack!" I bellowed. Mareep eyes widened and before I knew it, a cloud of dust appeared as it fled up the trunk before landing gracefully landing in front of the startled Pidgey.  
"Now, Thundershock!" Mareep exploded in yellow light before blasting the Pidgey with electric power. The Pidgey squawked and shook as the shock hit it, before falling off the branch.

"Slowpoke, Psywave!" Susii shouted.  
Slowpoke grunted and its eyes turned a soft blue colour, emitting a tutti-frutti coloured wave. The Pidgey slowed until it floated on the spot in midair and landed gently at Susii's feet.

"Is it... dead?"  
Susii giggled and flicked me off. "Of _course _it isn't, silly."  
"It's awfully still…"  
"It's just paralyzed dummy. Come on, we'll take it to the Pokémon Centre."  
I called to Mareep who gracefully landed beside me in one fluid jump. It nuzzled my leg and I stoked its wiry coat in awe of it. Each stroke emitted a crackle of yellow and left my hand feeling tingly.  
I couldn't help but laugh.

Susii smiled and picked up the paralysed Pidgey before turning around. "Come on, lets go and- "  
She was cut short.

In front of us stood a boy, silent against the shadows.  
He had a bright red mane of hair and snakelike eyes. His lip was curled into a sneer that made his face look like a torn mask. He was dressed completely in black and beside him, stood a weird canine pokémon. It was also black, apart from a coffee-coloured muzzle and underbelly. It had a white masklike skull bone above its eyes and white bands around its legs. Two white bones protruded from its back, looking like white ribs. Smoke poured from its nostrils.

The boy stepped forward, the sneer still fixed to his face.  
With a voice as thin and sharp as razor strips, he cut the air with a question.

"…Fancy a battle?"


	5. Battle scars

"Nah I'm okay thanks."  
I stumbled out the sentence with as much conviction as someone who wasn't totally freaked out by a unprovoked entrance from a guy with a fire-breathing horned dog for company. His lip curled further, revealing pointed teeth.

"Oh… well how about her?" he asked, his words like metallic strips. They sliced at his lips, carved his teeth further. He eyeballed Susii.  
I felt her tense beside me.  
"I think she's rather no-"  
- Fine."

_What!?_  
I looked at Susii in disbelief. Her face was set firm, a steely glare towards Captain Red.  
"What are you doing?" I asked, panicky.  
"Starting a battle Zen," she looked at me before switching her eyes to the pokéball in her hand.  
"Well, yeah, I figured that but don't you want to cons-"  
"-Shut up_ Zenny_" the boy interjected, spitting his words now. "If she wants to play rough, let her play rough." _Zenny? Pftt.  
_"Fine." I shrugged. At least it wasn't me.  
"What's your name?" Susii called to the woodland stranger.  
His lips curled, but neither smiled nor grimaced.  
"I'll tell you if you beat me _Curls_." Two cheeks flashed red and one sentence was uttered.  
"I already hate this guy."  
Woodland Stranger pulled out a couple of pokéballs from his pocket, shuffling between them before pocketing one. His eyes flashed and he swallowed. He eyeballed Susii.  
"You ready sister?"  
"Two secs…" Susii called.  
She shuffled through her satchel before pulling out a pink pokéball. If my expression said it all, Woodland Stranger's told said it all and more.  
"I _like_ pink," she humphed. I just nodded dumbly.  
"Right, let's do this!" Susii yelled, before throwing her pokéball towards Woodland Stranger.  
"Gooooooooo Vulpix!" There was a blinding flash and in the pokéball's place stood a dirty orange coloured fox, with slender wisps of smoke emitting from its streamlined jaw. Its claws charred the earth beneath it and thick streams of heat started pushing up from the ground.  
However, the most impressive feature was its huge tail; an ember coloured plumage.  
Its eyes were coal black, with no shine, just black holes of charred heat.

A snigger cut the air.  
Woodland Stranger flicked his wrist and his pokéball looped before hitting the air and erupting into a flash. A deafening screech rang out, harsh and splitting, forcing me to cover my ears and squeeze my eyes shut.  
The screech eventually subsided and in the pokéball's place stood a creature. It was something. _What though?_  
It was a serpent, beige in colour and a good 40 feet long. It had two long red antennas the pushed through, long and twirly above its eyes. Its tail was a collage of ocean colour that shined as clouds above mirrored on it. Its eyes were bright red, big, and the creature didn't look happy.  
Remaining completely still, it eyeballed Vulpix, whose eyes were trapped open. The serpent hissed.  
There were hints of wateriness behind its cry. A drowning cry. Suffocating.  
"What the fu…" I heard Susii whisper under her breath. She already looked beaten. She dropped her pokeball lamely back in her satchel.  
She glanced at me. I avoided her eyes.  
Woodland Stranger sniggered again before leisurely swallowing and whistling at the serpent. The red eyes widened and before I could blink it had disappeared.  
Susii looked just as confused as me. Whipping her head round, she scouted the forest desperately trying to locate the serpent.

"Milotic,_ now_!" An ocean cry and the ground below Vulpix erupted. There was a squeal as it flew into the air, tumbling.  
The Milotic travelled with it, and a second whistle instructed its next move.  
A rumbling sound covered the air and a torrent of water slammed into Vulpix, knocking it down into the ground, trapped under the cascade.  
It didn't stand a chance. Milotic slammed down with Vulpix, hissing triumphantly, until Woodland Stranger recalled it.  
The pokéball hissed as the giant pokémon returned, small bubbles escaping before it closed with a shallow click.  
There was no sound as Vulpix was recalled. Just dying embers and a scorched patch where it lay. It was out for the count.

A stony silence shifted into the middle of Susii and Woodland Stranger. I couldn't move. I felt numb.  
Susii said nothing. Eyes narrowed, she stalked towards her opponent before thrusting out her hand towards his chest.  
"Good match," she barely whispered it.  
"You're alright _Curls_, I don't touch hands with your lot." Woodland Stranger's sentence slapped against her cheek.  
The retort was sharp but the crack was louder as Susii's slapped Woodland Stranger's squarely in the face. He lurched backwards, just catching himself before furiously glaring at Susii, who stood there with a look which could melt diamond.  
"You're insane!" he spat, before glancing at me.  
I shrugged again, unable to speak. I was still thinking of the Milotic. How had such a guy like that trained something _so _majestic.  
It didn't make sense. Woodland Stranger rubbed his cheek slowly, his face twisted with a mixture of rage and... was that embarrassment?"Shame your pokemon can't hit as well as your_ girl_friend," he spat, his eyes alight.  
Susii bristled, her jaw set in a feral grimace.  
"Now you listen here you f-"  
-Zen, that's enough," Susii cut me off sharply. I looked down and realised I had taken two steps involuntarily towards him. I stepped back, and Woodland Stranger's face crunched into a vicious grin.  
"Yes, _Zenny_, I'd listen to your sidekick - if you know what's good for you. In fact, I'd be half inclide to ba-"

"Shut _uuuuup_!"  
We both jumped at Susii's squeal.  
She glared at Woodland Stranger, crystal tears scratched trails into her face. She stood, breathing heavily, and for once Woodland Stranger didn't look so cocky. In fact, he held no expression. His eyes still glinted, a steely coin flick in holes of darkness.  
"How about you just _go _away?" Susii yelled. "Can't you see you've won? Congratulations."  
"Ah yes, and no comes the small matter of paym-"  
"Fine, whatever you want! I have nothing to give, no money or whatever." Susii cried desperately.  
"I don't want money," Woodland Stranger retorted. He licked his pointed lips. "I want something_ else_."  
Susii looked up and laughed, but it rang shallow. "Like _what?"  
_"One of your pathetic pokemon," he said. I felt a surge of adrenalin course through me. Susii looked deflated.  
"But..." she tailed off. Woodland Stranger flicked some dirt from beneath his fingernails.  
"Listen sister, you lost. Fair and square." his smile was pasted back on his face. It was an ugly smile, stretched too far and too thin on his deceptively gaunt face. A grinning corpse.

"I only have Vulpix and Slowpoke," Susii said morosely. She shrugged off her satchel. My breath was circling in my mouth, hot and sharp.  
"So what?" I cried. "You're going to give _him _one of your pokemon? The guywho pitted that... that _thing _against your pokemon? Are you kidding me?"  
I was answered by my own echo. Like a bad knock knock joke. Who's there? You already know.

Some pathetic girl and a dirty redheaded bandit. Sorry, who? Yeah, I've got the same feeling.

Woodland Stranger walked toward Susii and grabbed her arm sharply.  
"Listen, _you_," he snarled. "You _know _what I want." Susii stared through him like a pane of glass.  
"And," he continued, "If I _don't _get it, you know what the consequences will be!" _Consequences?  
_"What the hell is going on?"I cried out loud, again answered by no-one. I stared at them both, but they ignored me.  
Woodland Stranger lowered his voice to a harsh whisper.

- An excerpt of their hushed conversation-

... mshh ... shum ... orb ... about time you sacri ... kyger ... urg city ... now

Woodland Stranger pushed Susii hard, and she stumbled on to the ground. I lept up but he turned and his eyes bore me down.  
"Don't try it _little boy_" he snarled. Wrinkles cut into the sides of his mouth. His dimples smiled in an ugly fashion.  
Susii said nothing, tears glued to her face.  
Woodland Stranger bent over, and looked like he was going to help her up. She looked up at him and before she could react, he pushed his mouth on to hers. Almost instantly she lurched away and clawed at his face. But he had skipped away before her nails made contact.  
"I _hate _you!" Susii yelled after him, as he sauntered away smirking. He had disappeared into the forest before his ears could hear.

The silence was created and broken in a matter of seconds.

"Why are you still here Zen?" Susii sighed, fingering her satchel.  
"Don't even _act _like that didn't happen Susii, what the _hell _was that about?"  
"... Nothing, forget it."  
"Fine. Just fine."

I had seen too much to care. I couldn't get to grips with it and I'd be damned if I was going to get involved.  
I sharply turned on my heel and walked away from her and her shattered, farcical, persona. I heard her release a small sob but ignored it.

This crumpled girl wasn't who she said she was, that was the truth.  
What did Woodland Stranger mean when he said orb? And who, or what, the hell is a kyger?

Only one man would know.


	6. The anomaly

I turned back three times to see Susii.  
Each trip lasted shorter, until I gave up angrily. I berated myself for caring.  
_Like she ever cared...  
_  
But I felt like she did. How could she be so lively and giggly and then transform into a quiet, withdrawn mess?  
That Woodland Stanger must have done a number on her. And _Kyger? _What _was _that?  
I quicked my pace.

Stumbling through the tall grass, I suddenly tasted the sharp tang of metal on my tongue.  
Raising my fingers to and from my mouth, I frowned when I saw blood shimmer on my fingertips. Drying quick, it stained into my prints, a bloody identity.  
"What the..." I pushed my finger against my lips again and felt it. A small spilt, hot and fleshy. "But _when_?"  
I couldn't grasp it. "_When _did I get hit in the mouth?" I relayed my thoughts back. Battle, defeat.. _kiss. _I involuntarily bit my lips, wincing my tooth dug into the split. Ah, that must have been it.

I looked up to yet more grass. The patterns of the sky etched onto their waxy coats, they waved rigidly in the wind. As sharp as paper yet welcoming as a home cooked meal. Green, the colour of nature. _That kiss...  
_I shook my head and looked up again. I should have been home by now, and yet I was surrounded by foliage. Wild flowers, glistening in the sunlight which dressed my surroundings. Damp soil clung the frays of my shoelaces. The air was moist, but breathable. I felt very small.  
_Too _small.

I took another wet breath and tried not to panic. _Panic Zen. _No, it's only a forest right? I looked up at the sky and noted its colours. Scratched yellows on blue glaze. White bubble of cloud sat still, eyeballing me back. It was me and only me.  
"I need to get out here..." I muttered to no-one in particular, yet the sound of speech soothed me.  
"Just go home Zen, at least you have a home to go to. I never should have come to this bloody place, I'm not cut out for this shi-"  
I continued to mutter, eyes trapped open. I pushed through the grass gingerly, the soft edges of green harmlessly slicing against my palms. A scissored tickle.  
The soil was getting slightly harder I noticed, and I quicked my pace. Soon, my shoes were crunching on gravel and pieces of rock strewn on the ground. The grass, although still as high and sharp, receded until I was stepping on sprouts. The space opened up in front of me.  
In front of me stood a small pond, surrounded by nothing by harsh, dry soil. The sprouts lay defeated, limply pulsing as their roots sucked at dust. Withered petals, melted into the ground, lay charred and ashamed. The pond however, glittered brightly. Flawlessly still, the water resembled aqua blue glass, and sand sized specks of brilliant white made it shine. There was not one ripple, not one sign of life. Just a pool, it's beauty, and it's cursed surroundings. Beauty and the beast.  
I took a few steps towards the pond. Before I knew it, it felt like someone had clamped a pillow over my face and I couldn't breathe. Panic ensued and my lungs sucked in concrete, my head swam and my fingers twitched, out of control. I stumbled back and air pushed into my throat once more. I choked, head pounding, sweat pasted across my forehead. My eyes, forced open ached and I couldn't move. I felt like I had been tied to a chair and beaten continuously for hours. I felt so... woozy. So _tired_. I yawn, long and hard and before I knew it, I blacked ou-

_Ze-_

...

_Zen!_

...

"_Zen, wake up!_"  
I snapped awake, and two professors stood over me. They looked familiar. Each had heavy bags under the eyes, wrinkles cut into their cheeks and an upturned grimace. And they both slapped me unexpectedly at the same time. "Now boy, are you with me?" A harsh voice sliced at my ears and pulled me up.  
I was still at the pond. The blue winked at me from the water. I still couldn't move.  
The Prof. sat opposite me, frowning. "Now, _boy_," he forced a smile, salty and thick. "What did you see?"  
I blinked again, and again and tried to speak. "I-I saw nuf-" I croaked before splitting into a cough. I cleared my throat by I felt like my entire mouth was made of sandpaper. "I saw n-nothing," I spat, grinding my wooden tongue against my lips to try and muster up some spit. Splinters prickled my tastebuds.  
The Prof.'s smile died, and his trademark frown smeared across his face. "Now, don't you go lying to me Zen," he said quietly, gruffly. His lab coat creased as he shifted. He pushed two scarred fingers against his face, scratching at an itch. "You must have seen _something_." I frowned at him.  
"But I didn't." I gave him my most adamant look. He squinted. "Well, I don't kno-  
-"Why are _you _here anyway?" I interjected.  
He stopped, and squinted some more. "How is _that _any of your business Zen?"  
"Well," I began, enjoying the saliva which was greasy and thick in my mouth, "You had _no _reason to be here, and when I collapse, you suddenly turn up like a superhero to save the day?" He didn't move. "Now come on, are you telling me that's not the _slightest _bit coincidential?" The Prof. suddenly stood up fluidly. "Yes," he said, "It is... a bit."  
I craned my neck up at him. Under his steely composure, he wore a chunky-knit pullover. A shy collar peeked out from the hem, a polo shirt underneath. He wore ironed trousers, slighltly patterned, and his watch caught the sun, blinding me when at the right angle. His shoes were polished, greasy and shiny. His shoelaces had no frays. He was... _too _nicely dressed.

I stood up sharply and glared at him.  
"There's _no _way you were _'just out here_', you were meeting someone!" I shouted. My echo died in the dust. I delivered my verdit flatly and it no more slapped him in the face than lighly brushed his entire frame. He didn't react, only nodded subtly before stiffly turning around and walking towards the grass. "Now hang on!" I shouted again. "What do you know about Kyger?"  
He stopped. "Yeah," I continued. "I met this Woo- this jerk, and he said something about Kyger." The Prof. had turned around now, his wrinkles enhanced.  
"Where is he?" he asked softly. I shrugged.  
"Not a clue, he disappeared before I could ask him anything." It was the truth... sort of.  
The Prof. chewed at his lip, pondering. _Come with me.  
_That's what I thought he would say. _Come with me Zen, and we'll sort this all out. I'm so sorry for being so horrible to you. I have deep underlying emotional issues and I just can't shake them.  
_But of course, he didn't.  
"I see you caught a Pokémon."  
I swallowed. "Yep, I caught it."  
"Ah."

An awkward silence expanded.

"Well _you _didn't give me one!" I cried, almost shrilly.  
He chewed on his lip again before agreeing. One nod.  
"I was going to give you Abra," he concluded. _Abra?  
_"But," His trademark glare coated his expressions now. "_You _went out and got your own. How nice."  
I flushed. "Well you made me suddenly appear in the Poké-  
"-Whatever Zen, I'm glad you got one."  
_ Makes his job easier more like.  
_He looked away, his face stony. Like he was hiding something. "What is it?"  
"A Mareep." He smiled when I said it. "Ah," he called. "A good starter."  
I said nothing, just frowned again. "You'll like what it evolves into," he said.  
"What does it evolve into?" I asked, hating myself for being interested. He shook his head.  
"It doesn't matter."  
"Why not?"  
"Because, you'll see soon enough." He kicked at a stone. "Well Zen, I've got to get back."  
"And what about Kyger, or whatever that is?"  
He paused before answering. "I don't know what Kyger is."  
"Oh..."  
_I bet he does.  
_"Yup." He continued kicking the ground. "I wouldn't come back here again Zen."  
I turned around and the blue shone it's sickly shine. "Not until I'm strong enough anyway," I whispered.  
The Prof. turned around and continued his walk into the grass. I ran after him.  
"Can I tag along?"  
"Sure, but it's only a five minute walk."  
"Still... I don't know this area very well."  
"Well Zen, I may have something for you back home."  
"Sweet."

We continued walking.  
Suddenly the Prof. stopped sharply.

"Wait, who's that?"

e your document here...


	7. Zoya & Eevee

A tall girl stood in front of us, greeting us with her back. She was picking berries from a curly, waxy sprout. An Eevee, a small plump fox-like pokémon lay by her feet, breathing laxly.  
Neither of them acknowledged our arrival. The girl continued to pick fiercly at the berries, which made a gentle 'pop' as they were plucked off their stems. They shone a mixture of purple and red, like ornate fairy lights. Their skins resembled glass, but I noticed they bruised almost instantly when falling on the dirt next to the girl's roughly worn shoes.  
The Prof. cleared his throat. The girl turned jumped and spun around sharply, grabbing a pokéball with almost impossible speed. Her hand blurred and the shallow click of the ball cut the air as it detached from her belt. The Eevee remained grounded, and continued to ignore us. Its eyes twitched under its sockets.  
Suddenly, our eyes locked, and I felt a rush as she she broke into a grin.  
"Hey Zen, what's up?"  
"Hi Zoya."

After sitting down and chatting, I came to two conclusions.  
Zoya was still rich. Her presence still oozed class. Her hair was perfectly twisted into an elaborate bun, and two stands of hair fell exactly symmetric down both sides of her head. She wore a off-white top, embroidered with pearls and glitter, and a large chunk of gold for a watch. Her jeans were ironed to her legs, which remained flawlessly slim. The jeans curled off at the end, showing a slither of leg before her shoes took focus.  
Too big for her, but somehow, they still worked. Purple denim, crisp white laces. It was like she was invincible against dirt.  
Her face was average. Not ugly, but not stand out. She was a beautifully normal dressed in inappropriately beautiful attire.  
"So, Zen," Zoya started, gnawing at the glass berry. "What's new with my best one?"

Conclusion two. How could I possibly be her best friend?  
Compared to Zoya, I was dirt normal. I was the muddy track which delayed her walk to crisp, clean stardom. I knew it. Her _parents _knew it. They always gave me disapproving looks when I knocked for her. As I walked away with her, I could almost feel them shaking their heads behind me. Still, they could master a fake grin whenever I looked back.  
We met as toddlers when I moved to the town with my parents, and like two magnets, stuck. Two very different poles, one usual attraction.  
Still, you never expect to grow old with your friends right? Do you?

"Well," I stumbled, glancing at the Prof. He, like us, was sitting down but staring intensely at the blissfully uninterested Eevee. "Not a lot really Zoya."  
She continued gnawing, staring at me. "I caught a pokémon..." I trailed off weakly. Zoya almost choked.

"No way!" I nodded. She looked me up and down before clearing her throat of glassy berry skin. "Well Zen, I guess I never thought you'd be catching one at _this _age."  
"I'm the same age as you!" I laughed.  
"Yeah, well I was _given _mine! And... well look at her," she giggled, motioning the unresponsive ball of fluff by her feet. "She doesn't exactly do much."  
"Thats bec-  
-cause you haven't evolved it yet."  
The Prof. was now staring at Zoya. Zoya flicked her eyes on mine before looking back at him.  
He seemed to chew over his words before delivering them to her. "Eevee," he said lightly, "Is a _normal type_. This means it isn't the strongest she can be." Zoya continued to look at the Prof. A puzzled look was painted on her face, and subtle anger started to spread in her expression.  
"Eevee can evolve into five different forms," the Prof. continued. "The beauty of it is, you can decide what one it evolves into."  
"IT?" Zoya gritted her teeth in anger, "That _IT _is a _she_!" The Prof. laughed, a chunky hollow tang.  
"That Eevee is neither male nor female," he said. "What you evolve it into, will determine its gender. Trust me," his voice was coated in a serious tone. "I _know_ these things."

Zoya stood, dumbstruck. A small crystal tear formed at her eye and died on her fingertip. "Well," she said shakily. "Can I evolve it now?" She forced a giggle, but it stuck like an old record. Tuneless, but there.  
"As a matter of fact, you can," smiled the Prof. He was clearly enjoying holding the superior position. "But you'll have to come to the lab later on. You shouldn't be doing it on your own."  
"Can I come?" I spurted out the question without thinking.  
The Prof.'s next sentence fell out on to the floor. He narrowed his brow. "I see no reason why not," he started, glancing at Zoya. She was chewing her bottom lip, staring at Eevee. "But of _course, _it's up to your friend here."  
"Zoy-  
-Of course you can Zen." Zoya had a small smile dusted on her lips.  
I smiled back, but didn't say anything.

"So, Zen," Zoya had shifted closer to Eevee. "What pokémon did _you_ catch?"

"A Mareep."  
"Ah, nice."  
"Yup."

A silence sat on the conversation, and we let it. Truth be told, we were both comfortable with not saying anything.  
"I got a _new_ pokémon y'know." Zoya unclicked her pokéball. The Prof. raised an eyebrow.  
I smiled uneasy. "Oh, yeah? What is it?"  
Zoya smiled devilishly. "I'll show you."

Standing up, she threw the pokéball up high. A mellow flash emitted, accompanied with the smell of roses, and freshly cut grass. I almost felt high, it was the most glorious smell. Suddenly, I felt like I was in a flower garden, on a vast hill. In front of me, patchwork countryside opened up, the sun burning in the flawless sky. The flowers smelled so nice.. oh so nice.  
"_Zen, snap out of it!" _I suddenly zoned in. Blinking, I recoiled at the thing in front of me. It was a small purple-pink creature, with two thin oval eyes. It was no bigger than a beach ball, and a thick leafy sprout pushed out from its head. A curious smile was stitched onto its lips, which were no thinner than wire. It floated a few centimetres off the ground. Spores of pollen slowly emitted from its skin, bubbling into dry powder which caught, and blew away as dust, in the wind. It was gruesomely hypnotizing.  
"Ah," the Prof. broke the silence. "A Hoppip." Zoya smiled sheepishly. The Prof. walked over to the Hoppip before offering his hand, palm up and flat. The Hoppip responded and spitting a small black seed into his hand, which he promptly pocketed.  
"What the.." Zoya motioned towards the Prof.'s pocket. "It doesn't matter," she muttered, as he turned back round to the Hoppip. "A pretty fine pokémon," he said. "Did you catch it?" Zoya shook her head.  
"No, my father gave it to me. He said he caught it on his travels." The Prof. nooded sincerely, and turned to Zoya.  
"There's something you should know about Hop- how many pokémon do you _have _Zoya!?"  
Zoya had another two pokéballs in her hand. She smiled wide. "Just four."  
I almost choked. "_Four_!?" I spluttered. "How did you manage to..." It clicked. "Ah. Your dad right?"  
Zoya nodded. With a flick of the wrist, she threw the pokéballs in the air, and an ugly sound rang as they opened.

Standing in front of Zoya stood a small light blue creature, almost like a thick-skinned guinea pig. Two blunt teeth pushed from it's top jaw, and it's ash black eyes were streaked with a white shine. Darker blue hectagons imprinted its skin, and narrow triangular whisker-like growths narrated its cheeks. It let out a defiant squeal, before tugging at a sprout nervously.  
Next to it stood another pokéball. Except it had eyes. And was much, much bigger. And it looked angry. Static electricity crackled as it shifted, and a hoarse robotic murmur radiated from it's core. Zoya squealed a giggle.  
"Guys, meet Nidoran and Voltorb!" she cried proudly. I couldn't speak. I'd never seen these pokémon before. I couldn't comprehend what my eyes were looking at. The Prof. however, stepped forward.  
"Zoya," he started quietly. He glanced at his watch. "Why do-" He paused. "Forget it. You should stop buy the lab later. I have something for you."  
Zoya giggled again and nodded excitedly; her ususally cool as a cube composure was gone, in place stood an excitable child.  
The Prof. nodded. "Good."  
He turned on a heel and started to walk away. I couldn't stop staring at the two pokémon in front of me. They were unaware of my fascination, which was probably for the best.

_Zen.  
Zen, listen..._

..

_Oh for the love of-_

"_ZEN_!" The Prof. yelled this time. I jumped out of my stare and snapped my eyes on his. "Yeah?"  
He frowned. "I expect to see you too."  
"What? Where?" He shook his head, fighting the urge to shout.  
"At my _lab_," he said, in a strained voice. I nodded.

One more fake smile, and the Prof. turned again and strode off into the grass.  
I looked at Zoya, who had returned to her nonchalant old self.

"I wonder what he wants." She said the words nervously, almost shyly.

Yeah... I wondered too.


	8. Challenge accepted

The following morning, I woke early.  
The morning air was still, and tasted of nerves. It twisted my stomach, mocking me.  
It was not comfortable.  
My pokéball lay still on the desk next to me. Every night, I pushed it into the belly of my wardrobe, hiding it from the probing eyes of my mother. If she knew I had caught a wild pokemon, I'd be scared she would explode.  
I pushed my tongue hard on the roof of my mouth, trying to quell the adrenalin which pulsed through my body. My fingers fiddled amongst each other, swimming, pushing for room. It's horrendous what nerves can do to a body.  
I glanced at the clock. 6:38AM. Far too early.  
The sun wasn't halfway up yet. It moved far too slowly, crawled up the skyline. Hobbled even.  
I got out of my bed, wincing when the soles of my feet crunched into place against the hard wooden flooring. Inhaling deeply, I glanced at my clock again. 6.39AM.  
_'Screw it' _I thought. Pulling on some shoes and donning a pair of jeans and a jacket, I grabbed the pokéball and headed for the stairs.

The lab was still as monstrous as ever. It took the colour of baby pink, radiating soft tones into the surrounding cloud.  
I took a place on the step, which to my amusement and embarrassment, turned a shade of vomit green. Yep, summed it up okay.  
I carried on up the stairs, willing myself to stop and turn around.  
But I couldn't. I was like a magnet to metal. No intention of stopping.  
The door glared at me as I approached. The memory of the Abra 'poofing' me to the pokémon centre stuck in my mind.  
I knocked, harder than usual. Barely two knocks in and the door whipped open, revealing the Prof. and Zoya.  
The Prof scowled. "You're _late_," he muttered, beckoning me in. I guilty smiled at him. He deflected it to the floor with another trademark glare. Zoya was emotionless, just nodded as I smiled at her. And suddenly it hit me.  
The lab was _massive_. Seriously huge. It spread for miles, one bloodless spherical wall which spread to form the dome I stood it. Several windows were dotted around the dome, tinted a different colour. They made the air rainbow coloured.  
The floor was white tiles, with white filler. It was the blandest room I'd seen, yet it took my breath away.  
Adorning the wall were glass egg shaped glass domes, no bigger than a rugby ball, and each possessing a pokéball. Some were red, some were blue. A few were pink and dusted with glitter. It was like a pokéball shop.  
The Prof. glanced at me, obviously smug with my reaction.  
"Zen, are we ready?" I closed my mouth and looked at him. "Yeah..." I tailed off, staring at the mass of desks which were in front of us. Hundreds were bolted to floor of the lab, almost systematically placed. They were symmetrically positioned, a giant square of desks, and each paired with cluttered piles of paperwork and pens. "Prof... what _is _this?" Zoya asked, looking around in wonder.  
The Prof. said nothing and quickened his pace. Walking past and through the layout, I noticed all the desks were dedicated to a pokémon each. A blue seahorse looking pokémon, with a beige underbelly. Two desks on, an even bigger version of it, but it looked like a dragon. Massive too. Dangerous I swallowed uneasily, and stared at the back of the Prof.'s lab coat. Sections of the floor were made of thick glass, tinted blue by water which gurgled underneath. I suddenly latched on.  
"This lab is half and half," I yelled, stopping suddenly. My echo slapped several walls before frittering into a faint whisper. The Prof. nodded.  
"Yes," he said, nonchalantly scratching his nose. "The bottom _half_ of this lab is entirely water. Well to a degree..."  
"Why?" Zoya questioned his, eyes confused. The Prof. snorted. "Do you want to find out, or are you going to bombard me with questions?" We both shut up and continued walking.

After traipsing past what must have been a million desks, we eventually arrived at a lift, which sliced into the floor. It was completely made of glass, apart from the odd metal fixing. It gleamed menacingly. "Get in," the Prof instructed us gruffly.  
We stepped in.

The lift moved flawlessly down, silently down, through the water. Through the glass we saw coral reefs, shipwrecks and several golden fish lazily floating. Despite their innocuous appearance, the one thing that showed they were dangerous were big white horns protruding in between their eyes at the top of their heads. The horns looked blunt, but the Prof. said they could smash through concrete. That's why the dome was made of a material that no pokémon could destroy. I asked what it was but he tapped the side of his nose.  
Zoya asked what the fish were and he looked at her incredulously. "Goldeens!," The Prof. informed us. "Good little pokémon, and from the same region two of your pokémon are from!" Zoya protested indignantly but the Prof. waved her cries away. The bottom of the lift suddenly got dark and I realised we were being sucked into what seemed like a dirty chute.

The glass, despite looking pristine and untouched on the inside, was coated with soil and pieces of plant flesh as we burrowed further into the earth. I looked at the Prof. who was rubbing his temple. Zoya had her eyes squeezed shut tight, jumping everytime her ears popped. And suddenly, we halted. Out of the four walls, three were still covered in dirt, worms pressed against the glass. They struggled helplessly, leaving streaky trails of silver. The other wall, which conveniently, was also the door, allowed us a sight into another room.  
Slathered in a rich purple wallpaper, it possessed a fire place, three chairs and a table. Several bookshelf hung on the side, unused and polished with dust. The doors hissed open and we gingerly stepped out. The Prof. strode towards the chairs before motioning at us to sit.  
"Right," he started, eyes narrowed. "Firstly, you are to tell _nobody _of this room. Whatever is said, stays said only in her. Do you understand? We both nodded.  
"Good," he rubbed his cheek and coughed. "I have brought you here because I've decided you will both go on an adventure."  
We looked blankly at him. "This adventure," he continued, "Will comprise of you two venturing out in the big wide world and talking to people, catching pokemon, and in essence, recording your journey."  
"What!?" Zoya gasped. The Prof. held up a hand. "Please, hush." he said. "I have a headache."  
Zoya frowned.  
"Zen, I've talked to your mother about it," the Prof. said, looking intensly at me. "I can't say she was _happy _with the decision, but she agreed nonetheless."  
I swallowed, my mouth dry. "But... but she didn't say anything to me about it! Surely she would have said something?"  
The Prof. shook his head. "No, I told her not to."  
"But wh-  
-Zoya, your parents are also okay with you doing this."  
Zoya shook her head slowly. "I'm not sure I can do this," she said, her face flushed.  
The Prof. laughed, a steely chuckle. "Of course you can," he said. "If you can own four pokémon, you can do this." Zoya flushed further.  
"And Zen," he said, looking at me again. "I know you've only got the one pokémon, but I can help you with that."  
I felt the adrenalin surge through my body again. "I can give you a pokémon," he said.  
I nodded, eyes wide in disbelief. Until I thought of something.  
"Hey, why didn't you give me one when I knocked a few weeks ago? You know it the rules!"  
The Prof. didn't flinch. "You didn't get one because your mum asked me not to," he said shortly. I frowned.  
"Listen Zen," he sighed. "If I gave you a pokémon, would you have gone on a journey?" I paused, thinking.  
"_Exactly_," he said. "Your poor mother would have had to push you to be independent. You would have wound up getting one pokémon and sticking with it, and living here forever." I bristled. "You have _no _idea what I woul-  
He coughed again. "I would have Zen," he said. "Trust me, I would have."  
I frowned again. The Prof. continued.  
"What I'm offering you two is an adventure! You'll explore the world you live in, encounter pokémon you never knew existed!" E clapped his hands together. "And of course, you'll have me behind you both."  
I smirked internally. Having the Prof. behind you was like having a drinking problem. A constant hangover.  
Yet, I still couldn't help but be intrigued. "Zen," the Prof. said, eyeballing me. "_League champion_."  
I laughed, shaking my head. "But it could happen!" The Prof. continued. "Imagine going to the Pokémon League and _winning_! I know you've only read about the league Zen. Your mother tells me you keep a book on it on your bookshelf." I flushed.  
"Well, how about seeing it?" I nodded, tempted.  
Zoya stood up, her face cool. "Okay, let's do this," she said. Flatly.  
The Prof. scowled. "Now listen here _primrose_, you can't just expect to milk off your parents your whole life. You need to do this _just _as much as Zen. Do you want to be as successful as your parents?" Zoya nooded. "Well, they didn't just get lucky. They worked for their success and I'm sure they had a bit of help. And I'm going to help you." Zoya grunted. "Uh-huh."  
The Prof. slammed his hand on his chair, making Zoya jump. He stood up briskly. "_That's _the spirit," he shouted. Walking over to the bookshelves, he whisted a tuneless melody.  
Zoya looked at me. _He's crazy_ she mouthed. I smiled uneasily.

After what seemed an age of searching, the Prof. sat back down, two devices in his hand.  
"These," he stated, "are Pokédex." Zoya looked at him blankly again. I allowed a small smile.

"That's right Zen," the Prof. mused, "You can now learn about pokémon. Isn't that what you always wanted?"  
"Well, yeah bu-  
- but no buts." The Prof said it firmly, before handing me the Pokédex. It was cold and heavy in my hand. Awkward to grip and scratched, it looked like it had gone through a few wars.  
"It's a bitch to handle," I said, accidentally saying instead of thinking. The Prof. raised an eyebrow.  
"That's what your father said apparently."  
I snapped my head to glare at him. _My father? _"What do you know about my fa-"  
The Prof. cut me off. "Zoya, here's yours. Zoya accepted the Pokédex, nodding in thanks.  
"How do they work?" she asked quietly. The Prof. simply said, "Find out."  
We both opened up our Pokédex, but my mind was elsewhere.  
"How do you know my father?" I asked the Prof. He blinked. "Another time Zen."  
"No," I said defiantly. "I want to _know_." But my voice shook, gave the game away.  
The Prof. tasted my unsure tone. "_Do _you Zen?" I looked down at the Pokedex.

After getting to grips with the machine, the Prof. told us it was time for us to get out because he was tired and there was only so much pressure below ground his head could take.  
We trundled back to the top of his lab and I looked at my Pokédex again.  
_How had this happened? _I couldn't grasp it. Three weeks, and I had caught a pokémon, watched a pokémon battle, made and lost a friend... And now I was expected to go on a journey across Johto with nothing but a Pokédex and one pokémon?  
_This is crazy..._

The Prof. walked us to the door, cuffing us on the back of the head as we exited the lab.  
"One final gift," he had said on the walk back, handing us five pokéballs each, and a phone. We took them, and thanked him.  
The doors clanked shut and we both stood outside them, rooted to the spot.

"Well Zen," Zoya said quietly. "I guess it's you and me against the world."  
I swallowed, but the air was thick and it caught in my throat.  
"Yeah," I choked, struggling to compose myself. "I guess it is."


	9. Purple beginnings

Zoya sighed as we walked down the steps, which were a deep shade of purple. I looked at her quizzically.  
"What's up?" She scrunched up her mouth and sighed again.  
"I'm not sure I'm ready for this Zen." I let out a shallow laugh.  
"Join the club. I have to go home and ex-"  
_Wait... I didn't!  
_"Well I have to go home and have a go at the mother." We both laughed uneasily. The morning was still in full flow, cold sunshine licked the chimney of the houses as we passed. The air was still and the grass whispered gently to us as we kicked at the path. Each step caused my stomach to twist a little harder. I bit my lip hard, probing the scab which had formed over the split in my lip.  
Zoya stopped suddenly. "I don't have anyone to go home with Zen." The sentence stumbled out clumsily, thick with tears. I looked at her, and sure enough a silver strip shone on her cheek. She didn't wipe it away, instead choosing to squeeze more which rolled down her face.  
"You can come back to mine Zoy," I said casually, uneasily. She allowed a small smile and nodded.  
We continued the walk to mine, past Farrow's house. It stood, decrepit yet proud. Propped up with excess metal, the foundations it stood on were uneven and rough, making the house almost slant. A crooked habitat. Inside, we heard the whistle of a kettle slip out the cracks and the steady hum of his Magnemite. Ever since he caught it, his electricity bills were nothing.  
A few more turns and I stood in front of my house. I breathed sharply and opened the front door.

"Mum?" I called out. I was greeted with silence. I had a quick check, but she wasn't around. It was unusual.  
"Hey, look." Zoya was looking at a box on the kitchen table. It stood, wrapped in nautical wrapping paper. White birds aligned the frames.  
A note was lightly attached to the parcel.

_'Hi Zen. I've been called to Goldenrod City for some business with work. I know you'll have some questions for me, so I'll get in touch with you as soon as I can. Love, Mum._'

I stood, looking dumbly at the note.  
"Are you _kidding_ me?" I muttered under my breath, embarrassed. Zoya giggled.  
"Well," she said smiling, "I guess that makes two of us." I smiled, ignoring my internal bruising. But she spotted it.  
"Come on," she said lightly, "We might as well head off." I nodded limply. I quicky ran upstairs, grabbing a satchel and making sure my pokéball was well cushioned. I took my time, and as I walked down the stairs, I still felt miffed.  
_Why did she not wait and explain herself? _I bit my lip hard, but the scab stood firm.  
Throwing a fake smile at Zoya, I nodded. Turning towards the door, I took in one last breath of home, and shut it hard behind me.

Walking back to the gate, Zoya took out a penknife. I knew what for.  
"Who knows," she stated sincerely. "We could both be champions one day." I laughed. "Yeah, maybe."  
We arrived the posts and found some space to mark. Zoya wrote her name, delicate and script-like. I hardly cut my name into the wood, enjoying the destructive feel to the process. Zoya pretended not to notice as I repeatedly stabbed the post. Splinters licked at my fingertips. Some bit. It felt good somehow. Passing the knife back to her, I smiled mischievously. "Come on, let's do this!"  
We walked through the posts and into the grass. A long stretch of it was flattened, ruined by footsteps and intrigue. Coughs of grass stood defiantly, dying. We followed it tentatively, both keeping quiet. Every snap caught us off guard, and when one rang out and we saw it was a twig Zoya had stepped on, we both let out a relieved laugh. This beginning stuff was stressful stuff.  
The path continued endlessly, a long stretch. Zoya hummed to herself and I tried to control my breathing.  
It was hard.  
Every shadow, I had been told as a youngster, could hide a pokémon, just ready to jump out at you. My eyes were trapped open, seeing creatures in the silence of the shade. As the morning opened up, so did the sun. It beat relentlessly, and after only 20 minutes of walking, my head started to swim. I struggled to focus on the pink flowers which adorned our route. The trees merged into one fuzzy strip and the sky was so blue. Zoya pushed me and I stumbled, before snapping back and glaring at her. She tapped her head sternly I got the message. First thing I'd do when I got the next town was buy a hat.  
The route was simple and uninspiring. The dying grass continued to stretch, the sun continued to shine, and the pokémon continued to hide. So much for the journey the Prof. has promised.  
Three hours of walking later, we took a break.  
"This is hard work," Zoya gasped, sweating heavily. A block of makeup was spread into her dress collar, like butter on hot toast. I screwed my nose up at it and she hit me, blushing. I didn't say anything, but she got the message. She took out a tissue from her bag and wiped most of it off.  
"How do you feel?" I teased, blowing lightly on her face. She scowled, but a hint of a smile remained on her lips as she pushed herself up. "Come on Zen, let's keep going." I looked at her helplessly. "Come _on_!"  
I groaned as I stood, and as the sun pushed, I couldn't help but feel the trek was a bad idea. I expressed this to Zoya, who agreed but pointed out that going back would be a waste of time. Three hours in the sun for a purpose is better than six for nothing. I agreed.  
Ahead, a wooden sign was stuck into the ground. We staggered to it, and Zoya let out a triumphant _woop_.  
"Yes! Cherrygrove City is only half an hour away," she shouted triumphantly. I looked at her in disbelief.  
"Half an _hour!?_" I gasped. "In _this _heat?" She nodded eagerly, suddenly queen of cool.  
"Well, I'll need _something _to protect me from the damn heat!" I yelled, suddenly losing my cool as a bead of sweat stung my eye.  
"_Want to borrow my hat?_" A whisper creept into my ear. Jolting back, I whipped around to a girl dressed entirely in black. Black shoes, black jeans and a black pullover. The only colour was her face, a chalky white, and her eyes which blazed an emerald green. Brown hair tumbled roughly over her shoulders.  
Behind me, I heard the shallow click of a pokéball and turned around to see Zoya standing in a defensive stance.  
"_Who _are you?" she hissed, her eyes set on the stranger in a steely glare. I flicked my eyes back to the girl.  
"My _name _is Kalina," she said softly, barely audible. Her arms stood limply down her sides, black nail varnish chipped on her fingers.  
Zoya continued to hold her stance. "How long have you been following us?" Kalina shook her head slowly.  
"I just arrived here," she whispered. Her eyes locked onto mine. The hairs on the back of my neck rose slightly. "Now," she said, smiling, "Do you _want _to borrow my hat?" She held out a black baseball cap. I took it from her, and flashed her an uneasy half smile.  
"Thanks." She nodded. "I'm Zen," I said. "And she," pointing behind me, I winked at Kalina, who looked curiously behind my shoulder. "Is Zoya. She'll be the girl kicking your ass if you don't behave."  
Kalina laughed softly, a copper lump of sound. It made my ears tingle.  
"Where are you from," Zoya asked, obviously shaken. She flicked her eyes warily, as if sensing something. Kalina squinted slightly, and her left hand formed a ball. "That's _enough_," she shouted sharply, making me and Zoya both jolt. She snapped her head to the right, and out of nowhere, a purple sprite-like pokémon suddenly appeared. I jumped and stumbled back into Zoya.  
It stood rigidly, every point on its body accentuated. Spikes formed it's elbows and knees and a sharp, jagged grin was torn across its face. The most noticable thing was its eyes, which were two huge jewels. They blazed in the sun, blinding us both when it turned to Kalina. "Sableye," she said softly, reachi ngout a hand. "Say hello to Zen and Zoya." The creature grabbed her finger and dragged itself to us, before extending its hand.  
The grin was till fixed on its face. I gingerly reached out and grabbed its hand. My mind went blank.

_My mother stood in front of me. She stood at the kitchen sink, writing.I walked lucidly up to her, and put my hand on her shoulder. But I didn't feel her.  
My hand glided through her body. She carried on writing, the pen cracking ink spots on the page.  
Her head lolled, and her body sagged against the kitchen side. The ink continued to spill.  
I tried to talk but my tongue was thick and heavy in my mouth. My veins in my arm pushed against my skin.  
My jaw locked as she stopped writing, her arm falling limp by her side.  
I tried again. "Mfff, mffff!" I tried to scream but swallowed the sound. My veins were hurting now.  
I clawed desperately at my mother but my hands glided through her image. A spray of blood popped from my skin, painting the ceiling.  
I almost passed out, the pain tore at my every sense.  
"Mffff!" I screamed against my tongue desperately, eyes trapped open as a thick strip of vein was torn from my arm by an invisible force. My head swam, the pain overcame me.  
My spine unlocked, my legs twisted at impossible angles. Both of my hands locked and splintered. I broke like a toy.  
Beside me, my mother fell on the floor, her strings cut. Her face wasn't there, just an empty abyss.  
Dead eyes stared at nothing.  
A lifeless human puppet. _

"Zen, wake _up!"  
_My eyes snapped open and I screamed. My whole body tingled.  
I tried to get up but my body failed me. Sweat soaked my clothes. Zoya and Kalina stood above me, looking worried.  
Well, Zoya did. Kalina just stared at me.  
"What the _hell_ happened?" I spat, my throat raw. Zoya shook her head helplessly. She looked at Kalina, who stood up and stretched casually. "What did you see?" she asked quietly.  
"M-my mother," I stuttured, shaking uncontrollable. My sweat-laden clothes were drying fast under the sun and were starting to crust.  
"She was writing." Kalina looked at me, awaiting my next sentence. "I was being screwed up." I stammered. "Everything in my body broke, a-and my mother, just... collapsed." I looked at Zoya, who looked shocked. Scared.  
Kalina sighed. "It's probably nothing," she said quietly, simply.  
I looked at her in shock. "_What_!?"I spat again. She squinted her eyes again.  
"Rest up," she said, before turning to Zoya. "Make sure he's okay. I'll go and find some berries for tonight."  
_Tonight!? _I looked at my watch. 6.34PM.  
I looked at Zoya, speechless. "I was out for _six _hours!?" I screeched, my voise hoarse and rusty.  
"I tried Zen," she said in a hushed whisper, looking back. But Kalina had disappeared into the foliage.  
"I tried to take you back home. I was going to take you to the Prof. But _she _didn't let me take you." She looked set to cry. "She kept saying you'd come round."  
I clenched my hands, wincing as my knuckles cracked into place.  
"She knows something," I said bitterly, still shaken. I couldn't shake the image. And the pain, it had _felt _so real.  
Zoya nodded. "I know," she said quietly. miserably.

I glared at the trees, and spat on the ground.  
"We need to find out what she's not telling us."


	10. Kalina's duty

The night came thick and fast and eventually a blanket of starry sky was draped over the evening.  
The sun hid, and moonlight poured coldy on us below. I was still shaking. The cold, the vision. It all mixed and crawled over my skin.  
Goosebumbs pushed roughly on my skin.  
Zoya had made a fire from the dry grass, but it burned into a smokey fog. I inhaled it without coughing, senses numb.  
She looked at me, worried.  
"Zen, we should go back..." she tailed off as I shook my head roughly.  
"No," my voice scraped out, like a shovel against ice. "She knows something. I _know _she does."  
"But what if she doesn't?"  
I eyeballed Zoya. "She _does _Zoy, I know she does. She was searching me for something."  
Zoya sat down next to me, blowing on the ashy remains of the grass. They drifted in the air, orange embers kissing my cheek.  
"Listen Zen," she said softly. "You were out for _six _hours."  
I nodded grimly. "She didn't let me take you back," she continued, voice low. "She refused. Why would she she do that?"  
I shrugged. "We'll have to find out."  
Zoya sighed heavily, shaking her head. "You're so stubborn Zen, you know that?" I tried not to smile.  
"That purple thing, it lo-  
-_Sableye._"  
"Yeah, that. As soon as it touched me, I was out for the count. What did it do once I fell?"  
Zoya frowned, thinking. "It.. Oh gosh, um, it stared at you. It's eyes were completely focused on you."  
I snorted. "Those jewel things? Yeah, I bet it can see shi-  
- It kept looking at Kalina."  
I looked at Zoya, a triumphant smile rested on my lips.  
"_See_?" I said. "They were _up _to something." Zoya didn't answer. She looked lost.  
The fire was out completely. A pile of charred plant sinew, it sat like a lump. Black and disinterested.  
We sat in silence, chewing the night air. In the distance, the forest sounded alive, but up close, the air was still and gagged. Muffled whispers ruffled the air as the grass fidgeted.  
Suddenly, the ash erupted and a large stream of flame burst from the ground. We screamed and threw ourselves away from the fire, recoiling as the heat instantly licked at our bodies.  
Adrenalin surged through my body, as I wildy looked around and snapped my eyes on Kalina's. She stood motionless over fire, her silhouette gentle and jagged. Her face remained motionless, her eyes singed by the flame. A burning emerald reflection.  
On her right, Sableye stood with one arm raised. In the light, we saw orange waves pulse from its hands. The fire danced to its strings.  
Kalina murmured something and Sableye nodded, lowering his arms. The fire instantly quietened and remained burning steadily.  
"Did I interrupt?" Kalina asked in a coarse whisper. In her hand, she held two berries, encased in a thick green skin. They were the size of baseballs and her skin on her hands stretched as they accommodated them. Twigs bit into her hair and leaves dyed at her feet, curling under the ember glare of the fire.  
Zoya stood up sharply, anger slapped across her face. "You _crazy _girl!" she screeched, losing her composure. Her face glowed, a mixture of flame and fury. She pointed at Kalina. "Why of all people did _you _follow us!?" The words flew out of her mouth with a mixture of spit and an angry echo answered her back.  
Kalina opened her mouth but Zoya cut her off.  
"That... that _thing_!" She now pointed at Sableye, which looked up at her, its jeweled eyes gleaming. "Put Zen in what can only be described as a coma! I _wanted _to take him back, but you said no. I asked why and you said he'll wake up. Six _hours _later, I'm tearing my hair out and you're still insisting he'll be okay!" The angry tirade of sound rained down on Kalina, who stared into the fire. Zoya's hands were balled up into fists.  
"Now _tell me_," she shouted, "What are you _doing _here?"  
The fire crackled and popped. Kalina continued to stare in it. She spoke, a foiled scrape of sound. "I can't say."  
Zoya laughed in frustration. "Of _course _you can't!" she cried, looking at me. I avoided her gaze, embarrassed. But she continued.  
"Listen, you either tell us or I leave, _right _now!" I snapped my eyes to look at Zoya's, hurt. I found my voice.  
"C'mon Zoya, _please _don't go." I looked at Kalina desperately. "_Well?_" I shouted now. I stood up, body aching. "We deserve to know what's happening here. I got sent out to do this _my _way, and suddenly I'm not in control. What are you doing here?"

Kalina scratched her head, almost tiredly. "Someone sent me. That's all I can say." She concluded, before sitting down. "I was given strict orders not to let you out of my sight until you arrived."  
The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, dread coursed through my body, cold and lethargic. It spread to my feet and I felt like I was standing on nothing. I struggled to stand. "W-who wants me?" I whispered, willing myself not to cry. _I want my mum_.  
Zoya read my thoughts instantly and nodded in support.  
"Is he going to get hurt when he arrives?" She asked the question nervously, stumbling before asking it. Kalina laughed, rusty and light.  
"No," she shook her head. "If anything, it will be the opposite. He will be celebrated." I looked at her, confused.  
"What do you mean?" Kalina looked at me again. "You'll find out if you come with me," she said icily. In one motion, she turned to Zoya and threw her own verbal curveball.  
"Listen, you can go. Please, _be _my guest. I wasn't asked to find you and I'll be _damned _if I'm going to beg for you to stick around." She spat the words, which hit Zoya like snowballs. They bruised her.  
"I'm staying with Zen," she said, suddenly very small. Crystal tears stained her cheeks. Kalina smiled, but it was friendly.  
"Good," she said shortly. "Now Zen," she turned to me and handed me a berry. "Eat up, we're going to rest up here and make a move to Cherrygrove tomorrow. And I'll cut you a deal. If we get to Cherrygrove and you decide you want to do this journey alone, I'll let you, okay? But trust me, I'm not with you because I want to be. I'm just looking out for until you get to where you're supposed to be. From there, you're on your own kiddo." I nodded, numbed by the sudden burst of aggressiveness which Kalina showed.  
"And where's that?" Kalina yawned. "Goldenrod City."  
"Where my mother is?" I asked, trying to swallow my hope that I'd see her before.  
"Exactly, where your mother is," she nodded. "Now, go to sleep both of you. We've got a long day tomorrow."  
Zoya sat down next to me and looked up at the night sky. I took her hand and gave it a squeeze. Kalina sighed.  
"Sableye," she whispered. "Time for bed." The creature nodded, eyes shining. A quick click and transferred to it's pokéball. Kalina placed it next to the fire and sat, staring into the flame. I let her.  
Lying on my back, I matched Zoya's breathing and floated into unconsciousness.

It seemed a matter of minutes before I was woken up the blue of the sky, which kissed my eyes as I woke. Sleeping dust had collected on my eyelashes during the night and I rubbed them away. Looking around, I saw Zoya still flat out asleep, her nose twitching. She must have been dreaming because she murmured between breaths.  
I smiled and looked for Kalina, but she wasn't there. Neither was the pokéball. I pushed Zoya's shoulder and woke her.  
"Whaa," she mumbled, half asleep.  
"_Zoya_," I whispered loudly. "Kalina's not he-  
The grass exploded a mile away. An shattering boom, which jolted me and Zoya from our morning and state and had us simultaneously screaming. The dust rose like a mushroom cloud, and I heard a cry echo in the distance.  
One blink later and the sky had turned dark and a thick bolt of lightening burst from the sky, flashing and blinding us. Ice cold rain slapped at our faces and bodies. I could barely breath, overcome by the freak show.  
The wind howled and I was smashed in face by flying sticks and debris. The howling got louder, making my head swim. Zoya lost consciousness and fell, sprawled on the ground. "_ZOYA_!" I screamed, but the howling swallowed my voice. I grabbed on to her and I felt the wind pick up. Squinting through the water, I saw a creature emerge, and almost swallowed my tongue in fright.  
It was a red metal mantis pokémon, it's body covered entirely in flame coloured steel. Three harsh spikes adorned its head, like a metal crown, and two heavy pincers were attached to it's metallic arms. It screeched, dark and low, it's eyes ablaze with apparent fury. Next to the pokémon stood Kalina, her eyes alight in a feral stare. "Hey Zen," she screamed waving. I couldn't move, paralyzed by the creature's appearance. The rain continued to slap against my face, stinging it until my cheeks were raw.  
Kalina stood by the mantis, soaked through and whooping. Her hair flew wildly behind her. Zoya's eyes rolled in their sockets, her mouth open in an unconscious scream.  
"_Scizor_," Kalina screamed, pointing. "Use Giga Impact!" The pokémon jumped up, a red orb forming between it's pincers. It disappeared into the rain, the faint pink orb showing through the sleet. It expanded suddenly and exploded, causing another ear-splitting boom. The light blinded me and the roaring increased in volume until both of my ears popped under the pressure.  
Kalina screamed in delight and the rain stopped suddenly.  
The sky returned blue, the sun shone and the grass settled like a foliage carpet. I opened my eyes fully, and standing a few metres away stood Scizor. In front of it, a blue pokémon lay on the ground, collapsed and out for the count. It's trainer, who looked no more than twelve returned the pokémon before it's ball and walked over to Kalina. They shook hands and the teen handed Kalina a few notes.  
Then he walked away casually. Zoya still lay next to me, still and unaware.  
"Hi Zen," Kalina whispered throatily, walking over with the Scizor in tow. My ears rang, dull and aching. Scizor's metal armor shone, blinding me. It was huge and stood menacingly at her side, breathing with a deep hydrolic-like. "Now now," Kalina whispered. Scizor took a few steps back, shaking the ground doing so. Dust shot up from the ground and slapped against it's metal legs.  
"K-Kaline, w-w-what are you do-doing?" I stuttered, teeth chattering. Kalina looked at me curiously.  
"I find a pokemon battle every morning does you good," she sighed. I glared at her.  
"B-But, why he-here!?" I tried to talk but couldn't, fear still thick and sickly in my throat. Kalina returned the Scizor, the pokéball hissing as the giant was sucked into the capsule. She walked to Zoya and observed her.  
Tutting, she propped her up and slapped her cheek with a hard _crack_. Zoya burst to life, eyes wide open and startled.  
"What happened? Where am I?" She rushed the words out before her memory clicked into gear. "Zen," she said cautiously, glaring at Kalina. "Let me guess, _she_ had something to do with the explosion?" I nodded, allowing a smile to creep on my lips.  
Sure, it was scary but that was _some _battle. Kalina noticed and a dusty grin hid on hers. "Right," she said, "Are we ready to go?"

We continued the walk, Kalina leading the way. Zoya tried to hold a hushed conversation on the way.  
"I _don't _like her Zen. How can we trust her? We can't. Why are we following her? Because _you _didn't stand up for yourself when you had the chance! Are you going to just forget about the fact you were out for _six _hours? _Obviously _you are..."  
She had a great way of answering her own questions. She strode forward, purposefully and started talking to Zoya. I hung back, thinking about the battle. The raw power of the moves impressed me, scared me. I pushed my hand in my satchel and fingered the pokéball Mareep was stored in. I hadn't taken it out for a few days. Did they need exercise?  
The path split into two, one forward, and one to right. Hidden on the right stood a derelict building.  
"A pathway to another patch," Kalina informed us in a hushed strand of sound. "Not worth exploring." Zoya nodded, agreeing for once. I think she had seen too much already. We continued up the main grassy path.  
Ahead, two teenage boys stood and watched us as we approached. One turned to other excitedly and uttered something before turning back to us.  
"Hey guys, fancy a battle?" I looked anxiously at Kalina, who in turn looked at Zoya. "How about it Zoya?" she asked. "Girls versus the guys?" Zoya looked back and me and I nodded eagerly.  
"Sure..." she said uneasily and Kalina nodded at the boy. It was decided. "Where are you guys going to battle?" I asked, nervous and excited. I was a little disappointed I wasn't asked, but also relieved. I'd be useless in a battle.  
Kalina looked at the two lads. "How about here?" she asked. "Nice open field for a battle." They both nodded eagerly.  
"A double battle," she continued. "One pokémon each, last pokémon standing is the winner!" The boys laughed and pushed each other.  
"You got this man!" "Nah, it's all yours!" Their banter was cute, but foolish. Kalina looked back and winked. I grinned.  
Somehow, I was beginning to forget she had come for me. She seemed to friendly to be dangerous.  
The two boys whooped and threw their pokéballs onto the field. Two flashes later and two creatures stood, staring down the two girls.  
One was a purple rat, with sharp yellow teeth pushing out of it's top jaw. Whiskers brushed it's cheeks and it let out a harsh squeal. A curly purple tail smacked the ground, causing dust to rise. I remembered the Pokédex the Prof. had given to me and pulled it out eagerly. I pushed the power button and it burst into life, talking in a robotic, flat drone.  
_'Rattata: This normal type pokémon bites anything when it attacks. Small and very quick, it is a common sight in many places.'  
_Next to the Rattata stood a bug pokémon. It looked like an over-sized ladybird, and it's big eyes shone. It's red back was adorned with several black spots, and its antenna twitched as it picked up on the two girls before it. It stood on six legs, thick and black with brilliant white feet. Again, the Pokédex did its job.  
_'Ledyba, the flying bug pokémon. It secretes an aromatic fluid from where its legs join its body. This fluid is used for communicating with others. It conveys their feelings to others by altering the fluid's scent.'  
_The two boys whooped and cheered, high-fiving each other. Kalina laughed loudly, before looking at Zoya. "You first."  
Zoya nodded and threw her pokéball out, and it erupted emitting a flash and crackle of static. Voltorb stood on the floor, crying out a shallow electric cry. Kalina looked on approvingly. Unzipping her jacket, she pulled out a pokéball and threw it into the ring. It opened up a horrible tuneless wail screeched out of it. I clapped my hands to my ears, as did the two boys and Zoya. Kalina smirked.  
The wail stopped and in the ball's place stood Sabl- wait. It wasn't. It was a purple pokémon, but it had no body, just a jagged sheet of purple haze which ended in a trail of wispy matter. It's face was scrunched up into an evil glare and purple matter formed a witch-like hat on it's head. It floated quietly, but it's glare was terrifying. I felt like crying just looking at it. The Pokédex burst into life.  
_'Mismagius, the ghost pokemon. Its cries sound like incantations. Those hearing it are tormented by headaches and hallucinations.'  
_The two boys stood frozen to the spot. Kalina whispered a command the terrifying apparation. It started to sing, sweet and clear. The Rattata suddenly buckled and fell to the floor. It's owner shouted in surprise. "What did you do to my pokémon!?" Kalina smirked again, showing off her teeth. Zoya stood frozen too, but she snapped out of it. "Voltorb," she shouted, pointing at the Ledyba. "Use Thundershock!" Voltorb suddenly crackled bright yellow and directed a crackling whip of lighting at Ledyba. "Ledyba!" The boy shouted but it was too late. The electricity tore through Ledyba and it's collapsed, out for the count. The boy started flailing his arms about in anger. "Ledyba, _return!_" he shouted. His partner was still shouting commands to his sleeping Rattata, who lay on the floor unconscious.  
Kalina stepped forward. "Mismaguis, use Dream Eater," she hissed, her voice scratching like sandpaper along wood. The pokémon's body glowed brightly, and a stream of almost invisible matter streamed towards it. It looked like a heatwave, bubbling in the air and distorting the view. The Rattata suddenly started thrashing about, its eyes still firmly locked shut.  
It's owner cried out helplessly. Mismaguis suddenly wailed again, triumphant in it's victory. The Rattata didn't move and was promptly returned. Both boys looked worried. They walked up to Kalina and Zoya and started shouting.  
"That was out of order!" One yelled, a high pitch squeal. "We only had weak pokémon, we wanted to practice." Emotion stood thick in his throat. Kalina waved them away. "I only keep strong pokémon pumpkin, deal with it." Zoya said nothing, but a satisfied smile stood on her lips. I read her thoughts. _First battle, first victory_. She knew full well she wasn't going to lose but I felt happy for her.  
Both boys continued to shout and scurry until Kalina snapped. She put both fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. Suddenly, a pair of purple hands burst through the ground below the teens' feet, grasping at their legs.  
They both screamed and hopped around as the purple hands followed them. Turning around in a cloud of dust, they stumbled through the grass, their screams still fresh in the air.  
Kalina laughed shallowly and Sableye pushed up from the ground eerily. The earth didn't move, the figure just slid through the dirt like it was air. I felt slightly uneasy watching it. Kalina turned to Zoya.  
"You did okay," she said, smiling. "You might want to teach Voltorb this." She pushed a disc into Zoya's hand.  
"What is it?"  
"Thunder." Zoya said, before turning to me. "Remember the thunderbolt Zen?" She winked again me.  
My stomach twisted as I nodded.  
Kalina laughed again. "Right, to Cherrygrove we go." She turned and walked in the teens' scared footsteps.  
I glanced at Zoya who was returning Voltorb to its ball. She was smiling.  
I punched her arm gently. "So you like her now?" I asked teasingly. She looked away, smiling.  
"No," she said, giggling. "But she could be worse."  
Ahead, we heard Kalina try to cough over a laugh.


	11. Learning curves

We carried on walking through the track. Lumps of rock jotted from the ground, tickling our soles. I kicked at them a few times and was quickly snapped at by Kalina.  
"You never know what could be just a rock," she explained in a harsh whisper. Her hair flowed smoothly over her shoulder. Chops of it fought with her buttonholes. I looked at her, frowning. She sighed.  
"Zoya, show him." A flash and I was on the floor. Looking up at her Geodude. It looked angry and knelt over me menacingly, diamond hard crumbs of rock scattering on me from its gravelly complexion. I nodded frantically at Kalina. Point made  
Zoya was smiling behind her makeup.  
We continued the trip in silence, lightly broken by the odd cough or sneeze. A few times I had stopped when the odd Rattata ran past, sniffing the ground. Kalina shook her head as I looked at her eagerly.  
"You can catch better than that Zen."

The grass reduced as the tips of Cherrygrove's buildings peirced the skyline ahead. It was midday and the sun was shining gloriously. We quickened our pace.  
Advancing into the city, we passed a number of people. Women and children walking along, various pokémon in tow. A child was leading a big deer-like pokémon off into a patch of grass. It's lazy expression made me smile and it flicked its tail blissfully, stretching in the streams of sunlight. Two strong antlers protruded from its head proudly, and an orb-like growth grew on each one. They glistened in the sunlight. Kalina snorted. "Just a Stantler," she informed us, barley looking at it. "Come on."  
We walked through the town, which was at best an open farm. Quaint wooden houses were crookedly placed, like splinters. Their windows were dull but every chimney we passed produced a different coloured smoke. It was oddly fascinating.  
We passed a house belching out a pink haze when Kalina stopped suddenly.  
"Zoya," she looked at her, face sharp. "I'm going to take Zen on to Violet City." Zoya nodded.  
"You're more than welcome to come with us, but I know there's a certain man on the way you'll want to see. Thing is, we don't pass him. You go right, and we go left." Zoya looked at Kalina curiously. "Who is he?"  
"His name is Bill." Kalina said gruffly. "He is a living ledgend among us pokémon trainers. He will give you the best advice for you pokémon, and set you up with a processing system to use at every Pokémon Centre." Zoya looked confused.  
"Process...?" Kalina nodded. "You'll know more when, sorry _if_ you speak to him," she said.  
"But it's your choice." Zoya looked at me before snapping her eyes back to Kalina.  
"And you won't hurt Zen?" I frowned, Kalina's face darkened. "You _know_ I won't," she said firmly. "You saw what I did in that battle right?" Zoya nodded slowly, chewing her lip.  
"I could have beaten _them_," she said. Her eyes glistened. Kalina's face remained emotionless, her emerald eyes burned against Zoya's deep blue ones. An ocean stare.  
"What pokémon do you have?" Zoya asked. Kalina laughed, a listless whisper. "Ones which would destroy yours."  
Zoya persisted. "But in the Pokémon Centre? The.. processing thing? You must have some lower levels." Kalina smiled.  
"I do," she confirmed. Zoya nodded. "Right, well pick three and give me a battle."  
My heart fluttered. "Zoya, what are you doing?" I hissed, treading the line between fear and astonishment.  
Zoya grinned, Kalina's face twisted into a knowing smile. "She wants to proves herself," she said harshly. Her hair whipped the air as she turned on her heel towards the Pokémon Centre. I followed, looking back at Zoya who looked worried.  
But jubilant.

The doors creaked open as Kalina brushed into the Pokémon Centre.  
The outside was the same as the in; unimpressive. Wooden beams made the building, which looked dates. Limp curtains hung from dirtied windows. The smell of old hung in the air.  
Sad coloured tiles were glued to the wall, like a child's playroom. Except the child had grown up, got married and had kids of his own. I tried not to choke on the musty smell. My sinuses wept.  
Kalina swept to a dilapidated computer in the corner of the building. Inserting a key into the machine, it coughed into life, and an option of different pokémon pictures flashed up onto the screen.  
Sifting through them, she muttered under her breath. I avoided the words, instead looking at the counter which was at the back of the building.  
It was gaudy and red, a faded bright memory. Behind it stood a pretty woman, dressed in white. She leaned on the counter, her chin resting on her arms. A hat rested on her flash of auburn hair.  
"Are we ready?" Kalina had sneaked up behind me. I whipped around to see a small smile pasted on her thin lips. Her ghostly complexion was dusted red and she looked at the girl behind the counter.  
"Have a crush do we Zen?" I frowned, cheeks burning. "Let's go," I muttered, ushering her towards the door. I flashed a glance back at the girl, who seemed more interested in the state of her nails than anything else.  
Outside, I saw Kalina walk towards Zoya. A few sentences and they both set off towards an empty field.  
"Zen," Kalina called as she strode to the grassy patch. "Will you be the ref?" I didn't answer, just shook my head.  
She laughed.

"Right," Kalina and Zoya were squared off against each other. "Are we ready?"  
Zoya nodded. "Good," a throaty whisper, two flashes and the battle began.  
Zoya had sent out Eevee. Kalina had sent out... something.  
It was small reptilian pokémon, it's skin the same colour as soft apple juice. It looked like a miniature dinosuar. It's eyes were bright and alert and a thich waxy leaf protruded from the top of its head. It cried, soft and sweet. The leaf smelt amazing. Thick and fragrant scented. I sat down heavily, staring at it lazily.  
"Are you going to get your Pokédex out Zen?" Kalina asked sharply. I shook my head.  
"No, it's okay," I garbled, my voice thick. I continued to inhale the scent of the leaf, head spinning. I heard a faint curse from Kalina as she gritted her teeth. _For the love of...  
_"Eevee," Zoya shouted, pointing ahead. "Use Charm!" Eevee growled and spat pink haze from its streamlined jaw. The haze twisted and turned, dancing around Kalina's pokémon. The creature looked around, eyes wide.  
Kalina laughed. "_Bayleef_!" She shouted, glaring at me. "Use Leech Seed." Bayleef jumped up and the pink haze disappeared easily, melting into the wind. The creature spat bullet shaped seeds at the Eevee which embedded into its coat. Zoya looked on anxiously. "Eevee!" she called out anxiously. "Are you okay?" The creature looked and nodded.  
Kalina grinned again, smug. "Now Bayleef," she shouted throatily. "Use Petal Dance!" The Bayleef roared, and it's lead span on its head, like a propeller. The ground beneath it split as a giant root pushed up from it, like a giant ugly arms.  
Angry dull bulbs on the root were forced open by the wind, splitting with sharp _cracks_. Pink petals flew from the cases, razor sharp and slicing into Eevee, which fell hard into the dirt. It struggled to its feet, as Bayleef looked on menacingly.  
Suddenly there was a loud _pop_ as the seeds in Eevee's side burst open, revealing sharp purple flowers. They hung like sores, waving in the air like blackened anemones. Bayleef pointed its leaf to the flowers which stiffened and suddenly sapped Eevee's energy in a ruthless drain.  
Eevee squealed, falling hard to the ground, twitching in discomfort as the flowers feasted on its energy. Bayleef sparkled greedily in the sunshine. Zoya cried out, her face a mixture of horror and upset. After three minutes of helpless watching, the flowers finished their job and suddenly rotted away, withering like blackened scabs on the dirt next to Eevee.  
The pokémon had fainted. Defeated by fauna. It was recalled by Zoya.  
I glanced at Kalina, eyes wide in admiration and grotesque interest. She remained entirely motionless, emotionless. Her eyes still shone but her expression was devoid of anything.  
Zoya threw her next ball out with less gusto. It bounced on the grass and exploded open. Voltorb rolled out, static crackled.  
Kalina recalled Bayleef and threw another ball into the ring.  
A blast and a small egg stood in the middle of the ring.  
It was a pokémon which looked like it had yet to shed its shell. The egg has red and blue shapes on it; they looked painted onto the exterior. A pair of yellow stubby hands and round feet with two toes each pushed from the eggshell. Dustings of the shell lay at its feet as it shook excitedly.  
Its eye were coal black and it had five spikes on its head that seem to form a crown. It chirped like a cricket, sharp and high.  
I pulled my Pokédex out under the glare of Kalina. It hummed into life.  
'_Togepi, the baby egg pokémon. Its shell is said to be stuffed with happiness that it shares with kindhearted people._'  
I looked at Togepi and chuckled. Kalina raised an eyebrow.  
I shrugged defensively. "I think Zoya's got this one," I called out teasingly. Kalina smirked.  
"Voltorb, use Thun-  
- Togepi, _METRONOME!_" Kalina screamed, warm dark sound filling her throat.  
I jumped.  
Togepi didn't. It glowed cherry red and shook, squealing defiantly. Steam poured from its shell, eyes tightly closed as red hot pressure built up in it's shell. The ground blackened under it's feet.  
Suddently, a pop like a champange cork went off and nothing. Togepi cooled down. Chirped. Kalina smiled.  
Zoya looked at me, panicking. She didn't know what was happening.  
Truthfully, I didn't either. Why didn't the Togepi attack?  
"Vol-" Zoya barely stumbled the word out when Togepi exploded, releasing waves of red hot heat at Voltorb. It screeched so hard my eardrums burst, and the raw power surged from its shell. It smashed into Voltorb, which instantly fainted.  
The roaring continued as Togepi was pushed off the ground by its own force. The power was immense.  
Chunks of earth was blasted up as it lost control of the attack. I dodged flying rocks and clumps of soil as the roaring faded. I ended up on my back, winded, pumped, scared. A soupy mix of adrenalin and complete fear rolled through my veins.  
Breathing heavily, in the middle of a giant blast-made bowl, stood Togepi. Sweat rolled of it's leathery skin. It chirped defiantly.  
Zoya was sprawled on the ground, her satchel resting on the back of her head. Breathing hard but not moving. Voltorb was already recalled. Nowhere to be seen.  
Kalina in comparison, was standing tall, composed. Hands on hips, she stepped into the bowl, picking Togepi up gently. It chirped and nuzzled her shouler. Sitting up, I tried to catch my breath which was escaping faster than I could catch it.  
Zoya stood up shakily and was pulled to her feet by Kalina. Tears scratched her face, her makeup lopsided.  
She looked scared.  
"You did good," Kalina whispered softly. Almost friendly.  
"But you'll never beat me Zoya. Not now. Not ever." The words sliced at Zoya, who deflated.  
Nodded. Accepted it.  
"I think you should see Bill." Zoya directed the sentence like a suggestion. With the tone of an order.  
"Come on," she took Zoya's hand. "Let's go and heal them."

A small sob escaped Zoya's lips and she allowed herself to be dragged away by Kalina.  
I stood awkwardly. Kalina turned around.  
"Wait here Zen, we're going to Violet City as soon as I get back."  
My stomach twisted.  
Zoya continued to cry.

The sun burned.


	12. Finding Cedar

Kalina returned. Alone.  
Her face was painted in a triumphant smile, but concern flicked in her eyes. Worry lines cut into her smooth cheeks.  
I chose to ignore them, knowing I'd get short shrift if I asked what was wrong.  
She looked at me and turned, beckoning with her arm, and I followed her through the grass.

The sun was dipping in the sky, leaving a yellowish hue of sunlight resting on the buildings. The shadows slanted on the the floor, harmlessly marking the ground. The air was still warm.  
"I took Zoya to see Bill." Kalina spoke softly but firmly. Her voice sounded scratched.  
"Bill?"  
We walked past the Pokémon Centre and up ahead, I saw the grass transform into another gravelly track. I moaned internally, and my mind played with me. An ache pushed into both my feet, my legs cramped. And yet I walked.  
"He's a pokémon professor who can help her," Kalina said flatly. "She'll catch up with us when she's ready." A slither of shadow carved at her head as she turned around and looked sternly at me. "You'll be doing the next couple of battles." She said the words with a hidden emotion, was it anger? Her face assigned no emotion though. I coughed as my breath caught in my throat.  
"Okay," I muttered, scared and pleased at the same time. Seeing how Zoya had been completely brushed aside with a good group of pokémon hadn't exactly distilled the biggest amount of faith in my ability.  
Hell, I hadn't even released Mareep from its pokéball in days. Who knows if it would still respect me enough to obey me, let alone win a battle for me. A bead of sweat clung to me brow as I started panicking. Kalina took no notice, eyes set firmly ahead.  
The crunch of gravel bit my eardrums and snapped me out of my worry. Thick trees lined both sides of the path, claustrophobic yet comforting. Their trunks were scratched with nature's mark. Some weren't. Deep gashed scarred one while the other stood up uneasily, scorched. It crouched, blistered and ugly. Flakes of wood peeled revealing it's soft wooden interior. A beautiful blister.  
I stopped and looked at it closer. It radiated heat, a searing wave of ember-induced haze which meant I couldn't get too close. Surely it was too hot for it _not _to burn. So why wasn't it?  
"It's been hit in battle." Kalina had calmly crunched to my side. With a disinterested look on her face, she pushed her hand onto the bark and it sizzled. I winced and snapped her arm back, expecting to see her hand's skin stripped to the bark.  
Surprisingly, her hand remained in tact. The skin still remained flawlessly smooth. The tree continued to crackle and spit.  
"I don't get it," I said, feeling confused. Kalina sighed.  
"In battle," she started slowly, chewing over her words, "Only the pokémon sustain injury. The environment remains in tact."  
I interjected, shaking me head. "But where Togepi blasted the ground up-  
Kalina bit back. "-_Yes_, it looked bad but actually, if you go back to where it all happened, the would be perfectly fine. This whole world we live in, it's designed to host pokémon and pokémon battles. But it also regenerates."  
I looked at her dumbly. She growled, frustrated. "For _example_," she almost shouted her sentences now. She strode to the tree and pulled off a twig with a sharp snap. Grassy sinew squirmed before falling limp. "If I, a _human_, does damage to an environment, it will remain permenant. This world wasn't made for us. But..."  
She pulled a pokéball out of her jacket and threw it. A flash and Mismagius appeared, glaring at Kalina. "Oh hush."  
Kalina smirked at her pokémon before muttering a command. The witch pokémon slowly glowed and belched out a black shadowy ball which crackled with dark power. It slammed into the burnt tree with a mighty crash, toppling it. A crack and the spine of the tree snapped and slowly gave way. Diving out of the way, I watched as it slammed into the ground. Billows of dust were forced into the air, creating a mini dust-storm. I felt soil in my mouth.  
I stood up angrily. "You could have _told _me you were planning to do that," I steamed. "Why did you do-"  
Kalina raised her hand. "Close your eyes for five seconds." She said it so calmy, I insantly obliged despite the fact I had adrenalin pushing through my body at a rate of knots. "And open." The whisper was released and when I opened my eyes, the tree was back in its standing bruised state. My mouth fell open.  
"B-but..." I tried to stutter an excuse but words failed me. "It's an illusion Zen." Kalina slid the words to me almost like she was passing me a secretnote. Like she shouldn't be saying it. "But if I chopped it down, it would stay down, and it would die."  
I shook my head slowly, but noticed the twig Kalina had snapped off still stood at the foot of the tree. Correctly predicted. "Touch it," she said aggressively, yet still passive. I slowly approached the tree which ten seconds eariler had been felled. My head felt a confused mess.  
Gingerly, I pushed my hand to the tree, wincing as the heat seared it. But did it? I snapped my hand back and looked again at the scorched patch of bark. Focusing on it, I pushed my hand out again. No heat.  
"See?" Kalina was smiling. "It's just your mind. That's the power of humans." I pushed my hand on the burnt bark and it sizzled but didn't hurt. Just tingled, like pins and needles. I smiled, impressed. Confused.  
Kalina pulled me away from the trunk, suddenly serious. "Now, can we get on with things?"

"So, what else don't I know about?"  
We were walking slowly down the gravel road. Every couple of minutes I checked over my hand, half expecting blisters to greedily take over my palm. But they didn't.  
"Too much to tell you now," Kalina said it with a grim tone. "You'll find out as you go along." I nodded.  
"So, can you tell me why you're here to see me to Goldenrod City? I mean, Zoya isn't here now. Surely that's the reason you didn't want to tell me?" Kalina shook her head.  
"No Zen," she scraped the words out with force. They fell heavy from her mouth. "I didn't tell you because I know you'd refuse to believe what I was telling you." She looked down and continued walking.  
My heart hammered but I tried to stay cool. "I think I can handle it." Kalina shook her head.  
"I'll tell you later Zen." She pointed ahead. The road was littered with large rocks. Up past the rocks, huge boulders stood, glued to the ground. Blocking the path completely The sun had just closed its curtains. Kalina spoke.  
"Looks like we have some night-time climbing to do."  
After some casual scrutiny of our situation, Kalina told me I should hoist myself up on to the biggest boulder and scout ahead. "See what we're facing," she suggested. I protested.  
Three boulders up, I looked down and protested again. I received the promise of a punch if I didn't get to work.  
My hands were greasy and slapped helplessly against the smooth surface of the rocks. My legs shook, my feet felt like would slip at any minute. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder and I was being pulled up to the top of the pile.  
My shoes scraped against the rock as I shouted, half afraid, half relieved. I shut my eyes until my feet landed on a stable surface. Opening them up, I saw a night scene sprawled out in front of me. It stretched for miles.  
Below us, fires were lit and figures huddled round them. Faded laughter softly trickled in the airways.  
In the distance, a huge rocky cliff stood, with a dark gaping entrance. More fires illuminated the darkness in the distance.  
Music tingled my on my eardrums. "Not a bad view..." Kalina whispered next to me. I snapped my eyes to hers.  
"Wait, you were down there a min-  
"- Lesson number one." Kalina smirked. "Pokémon aren't just for battle. They help too."  
Jumping lightly from the boulder to ones below, she called to me. "Now let's go." I sat down and slid down the boulder.  
I was a terrible gymnast.

We reached the summit of the boulders and walked towards the group which were sitting around the fire.  
Four men and a couple of women surrounded it, drinking and laughing. The fire crackled lamely, snapping and biting the air with embers. The group stopped laughing as Kalina approached.  
One of the guys stood up. "Can I help you?" He directed the question pleasantly enough, but a steely, serious tone hid behind the charm. An aged tone. Overused, but necessary.  
Kalina flicked her eyes to the man. Pushing one hand in her pocket, she pulled out a letter. "Yes," she hissed gently, without menace but enough to make a touch of anxiousness flicker in my stomach. "I'm looking for Cedar." The man stiffened.  
The three other men stood up. "And what does it concern ye' little lady?" The man remained stiff, almost on edge.  
Kalina stepped forward, and her shoulderblades pushed through her jacket. I deliberated running but my feet were like lead.  
"I'm not _little _thank you very much." She spat the words now, they showered the fire like a venomous rain. The two ladies cowered. My eyes were trapped open, dry and disbelieving.  
"_Now_," Kalina's voice was merely a sharp whisper but it slit the air. "Where. _Is_. He?"  
The man squinted. "Okay," he muttered gruffly. "I don't know who you think you are but you can't just come and push demands on us. I know where Cedar is but there's no way in _hell _I'm telling you." Kalina stood like a statue.  
"Will you tell me if I beat you in a battle?" One of the other men snorted. "You won't beat him, lady." He said the words with an immeasurable amount of confidence. If I hadn't been so confused and worried, I would have laughed.  
"Prove it." Kalina spat the sentence and the man nodded. "Fine," he said. "A double battle though." My heart raced and I instantly stepped forward to protest that I had nothing to do with this crazy woman who had just turned up and ruined their night.  
"Fine," Kalina said fiercely. "My two versus your two. Let's go."  
The man nodded again and pulled two pokéballs from his belt. He wore a patched lumberjack style jacket, faded against the night air. A thick belt held up some thick jeans. Steel toecapped boots adorned his feet. The leather was worked down to the steel, and they glinted against the fire.  
I was too busy observing his shoes to realise I was standing in the middle of the two. Looking up, I was blinded by a flash and stumbled to the ground, much to the amusement of his entourage. Rolling to the side, I dusted myself off, face burning.  
The man stood opposite Kalina, bristling. Kalina stood, tall and slender. Devastatingly beautiful, she melted into the night air and her green eyes shone like cat's eyes. The flash was from the man's pokéball and in its place stood a furry beast, snorting and shaking.  
Its thick arms and legs were adorned with metal shackles, dulled and dented. Two pink triangular ears pushed from its messy-haird body. A delicate pink nose, dripping with juice and two angry eyes made up the rest of its features.  
I squinted at something moving at the top of its head and was disgusted to see it was a thick, tubular vein pulsing. It squirmed like a trapped worm. I tried not to retch. I pulled out my Pokédex.  
_'Primeape, the pig monkey pokémon. Always furious and tenacious to boot, it will not abandon chasing its quarry until it is caught.'  
_Next to Primeape stood a small blob of dark matter. A ball of haze, it possessed just two evil looking eyes and a jagged mouth glittering with sharp white teeth. The Pokédex chattered again.  
_'Gastly, the gas pokémon. aid to appear in decrepit, deserted buildings. It has no real shape.'_  
Kalina had called out Sableye and Mismagius. Sableye stood lightly, almost invisible. It jittered, and moonlight made his jeweled eyes glint. Mismagius hovered, forlornly moaning. Its features were one of pure distaste for its opposition.  
The battle got underway with a gruff voice breaking the silence.

"Okay Primeape," the man called. "Use Focus Energy!" The creature grunted and several swirls of lights pulled up from the ground and surrounded it. Its arms and legs tensed, and more veins pushed to the surface of its thick skin.  
Kalina, emotionless, whispered a command. "You know what to do. Do it." Sableye jittered excitedly, a tinny and painful sound. Instantly, it melted into nothing. Primeape, pumped from its move, scouted the field in front of it, snorting. Ears twitching.  
The man scratched his chin before calling to his pokémon. "Wait it out Primeape, let's see what this little lady's got planned." Kalina snarled, a silent curl of the lip before harshly calling in front of her. "Sableye, Spacial Rend!"  
The man's eyes snapped opened and he screamed out a command to Primeape but to no avail. Before he opened his mouth, the air in front of Primeape twisted, like soft plastic. Purple flares erupted from nowhere and Sableye appeared. Primape's figure twisted with the air, and it's eyes rolled into the back of its head as it was sucked into a seemingly invisible void. The man's crew cried out in shock. Kalina's snarl remained littered on her lips.  
A loud _POP _and the Primeape disappeared completely. Sableye stood, still.  
Suddenly, a loud crack and the Primeape was coughed up from nowhere and landed heavily on the ground in front of the man, unconscious. It's vein still pulsed, but it breathed slowly. The man looked desparately at Gastly but it had disappeared too.  
"That's not fair!" He yelled furiously at Kalina. "Surely that move doesn't affect two pokémon!" Kalina laughed.  
"Of course not," she hissed. "But Mismagius here..." The ghost screeched eerily, triumphant. "I don't need to command her with my voice." The man looked worried. Kalina tapped the side of her head. "We're linked in more ways than one." She grinned cruelly.  
"At the moment, your Gastly in there." She pointed at a small, almost invisible lump on the floor in front of the man's shoes.  
"Mismagius used Sucker Punch," Kalina walked into the field, past her pokémon. "Which worked, which means..." Her voice was louder now, thick with defiance. "_You _were going to attack next and try and catch me off guard while you were watching your poor Primeape get torn to shreds." She poked a finger into the man's ribcage accusingly. "And you _can't _deny it." Each word was coated with spiteful venom.  
"I knew your own move before you did." Her voice was was damning. "Next time, you should think _twice _before you label someone a little lady. Do you understand me?" I couldn't breathe, she was so scary. Her eyes were raw with disgust and she spat the words into the mans face with brute force. Each stress and syllable blackened his eyes. Clubbed at his nose until it bled.  
The man nodded forlornly. His crew watched, fascinated and appalled.  
"_Now_," Kalina kept her finger pushed into the man's ribcage. "_Where _is Cedar?"  
The man pointed to a tent almost away, lightly illuminated by a fire which faintly flickered, shady in the night background.  
Without another word, Kalina returned her two pokémon and with a flick of her head, ordered me to follow her.  
I stumbled forward, looking apologetically at the man. He stared at the ground.

I didn't say anything as I caught up with Kalina.  
Her footsteps crunched into the ground. Her breathing was rusty.  
I was scared. Petrified actually. But my main concern was who angry Kalina had got.  
And if that was the case with a stranger, what would she be like with Cedar?

And more importantly, _who _was Cedar?


	13. Demonic innocence

A cruel smile glittered on Kalina's lips as we walked in silence.  
I felt a mixture of fear and power. _C'mon Zen, at least you're not the one she's looking for.  
_I tried to reassure myself. _But she's already found me...  
_To no avail.

The moon was pinned to the dark canvas above, streaming cold light on the trees. Shadows twitched and melted into each other.  
The air was thick with smoke, thick and bitter. Crackles lit the air as we walked past countless people, huddled around fire.  
Some laughed and joked. Some just stared into the flames.  
The tents that man had pointed out where just a few steps away, brightly lit by the fire. Sharp splashes of scratches and normal wear and tear flickered in the orange heat. The tents breathed.  
Kalina gently stepped over the ropes dug into the ground to hold them up, and scouted the group sitting around the fire. Well, it wasn't a group.  
Two children sat hunched on a dry log. A boy and a girl. They pushed their hands towards the flames, teasing them as the hot strips of heat lunged for their finger tips. The boy had a mass of dark curls and freckles were spotted untidily on his face. He looked up when Kalina approached, but didn't say anything.  
The girl was small and didn't even notice Kalina's entrance. She was indulged in a book, a thick leather-bound document. She squinted as she struggled to catch the words in the mix of orange light and murky shade. Her eyes looked completely black but it was probably just the night playing tricks.  
She sighed as she started the page again. The sentences were strewn on the pages, playing hide and seek with her eyes. Words peeked at her behind their ink. She was dressed in normal clothes, a jumper and leggings, and she had a sweet face. Strewn with innocence, she ignored us both and continued to read. Her head bowed, I only saw flashes of her face when we turned the pages. Her eyes followed the lines of words.  
"Where's Cedar?" Kalina asked the question in her usual brash tone. The boy shrugged. The girl remained engrossed in her book, deaf to Kalina's whisper. I looked at her again and tried to focus on her face, but it hid behind her pages. I felt uneasy. The flashes of her face I _did _see just didn't look right. I tried not to stare.  
"He was here an hour ago." The boy answered Kalina casually, unafraid of Kalina. He didn't even recognise me, and if he did, he made no acknowledgment of my presence. I dug a hole in the dirt with my shoe.  
"Well, I need to speak to him. Where are your parents?" Again the boy shrugged. His demeanour was listless, uninterested. The only thing he cared about was his hands, which were being cooked by the fire. The girl continued to read, hidden by paper pages. Kalina frowned.  
"Well then, I'd suggest you find them." The boy yawned.  
"Oh yeah?" He was too confident for his own good. I tried to catch his eyes by opening mine wide and slowly shaking my head. He ignored me.  
"Listen, I don't know where he is, okay? I'm too tired to care right now..." His sentence struggled out as he yawned again, long and slow. My mouth twitched as I forced my reflexes not to mirror his.  
"What's your name?" Kalina inspected her nails as she asked. Killing time.  
"Oliver, but I prefer to be called Ox." The boy said the words with a firm ownership. "And you?"  
"It doesn't matter." Kalina stepped lightly over the boy's feet and sat next to the girl. She motioned at me to take a seat too.  
The boy dismissively waved his hand and continued cooking his hands. I yawned.  
Studying Ox and the girl, it dawned on me that they were filthy. The firelight gently revealed their cuts and dirty skin. Ox's lips were even caked in filth. The girl was no better. A slither of dried dirt was crusted her cheek. The rest of her face was turned away, reading a page. Various annotations, wrote down in a fluid scrawl, scarred the page. Twigs were caught in her hair. But she continued reading, oblivious to my stare. Kalina however, tried to speak to her.  
"Good book?" A nod confirmed that it was. Kalina rolled her eyes and looked away.  
Taking off her jacket, she placed it gently on the floor, away from the flames. A couple of her pokéballs glinted orange. Ox noticed straight away.  
"You have _pokémon?_" He asked incredulously, open eyed. Kalina nodded. "I have plenty."  
Ox frowned. "I haven't got one, my father says I'm too young." He stared into the fire. "But I know how to handle them. We got taught at school and my teacher said I was one of the best he'd seen." Kalina nodded slowly.  
"Well, why don't you pick one of mine and give my friend here a battle?" She looked at me, a dust of a smile on her thin lips. My heart raced.  
"Nah, it's okay," I stammered but Ox had stood up excitedly, nodding. "Can I pick any one?"  
Kalina shook her head. "No, you can pick one of these three." She picked her jacket up and pushed her hand into an inside pocket. Pulling out the pokéballs, she offered them to Ox, who took them roughly. "Careful!" Kalina snapped fiercely and Ox looked away apologetically.  
He picked a ball and handed the other two back to Kalina. She looked at me.  
"Off you go, Zen." Light humour crackled in her voice. I shakily stood up.  
"I've only had one battle you know," I said to Ox lamely. He looked at me and smirked. "Then this should be easy."  
I frowned. "Shut up, let's battle." I growled at him.  
Ox's smirk remained.

We stood a good few meters apart. My eyes only managed to catch his shape when he moved, shifting from foot to foot.  
The darkness made my eyes nervous. To the right, I saw Kalina's flawless silhouette, glowing in the flame. The girl continued to read on oblivious to what was happening.  
"You ready?" Ox called out and I nodded. A small pause and he threw the ball into the darkness.  
A blinding flash and a creature appeared. It was a huge serpent. It was mostly black, but has several markings on its body which I struggled to make out in the dark. Flashes of yellow on its skin glowed faintly in the night and the moved as the creature twisted menacingly, hissing. It had elongated red fangs protruding from its upper jaw and fierce red eyes. A sharp blade-like shape of a tail dig into the earth with a _whumph_.  
I looked at Kalina angrily. "You really gave him _this _pokémon," I cried. Kalina smiled and nodded. I took out my Pokédex.  
_'Seviper, the fang snake pokémon. Seviper is known for its angry disposition, immobilizing its opponents by wrapping its body around them.'_  
I muttered curses under breath and gripped the pokéball as I took it from my satchel and tossed it onto the field. "Go, Mareep!" A crackle of static blew the dirt up as the ball landed, and several forks of lightning cracked above as Mareep was released. It bleated, flashing with electricity. Ox laughed. "_That's _your pokémon?" He goaded. I slashed a retort.  
"At least I _own _my pokémon, you fat slab!" He frowned and growled a command to Seviper. "Seviper, use Poison Tail!"  
But I was prepared. "Mareep, dodge and use Thunder Wave!" I yelled. Mareep watched as the serpent flew towards it, it's tail an ugly shade of purple. It sharply swung towards the body of Mareep, who at the the last second dodged gracefully. I heard Ox gasp and shout another command to Seviper. Adrenalin took hold. "Mareep, _now_!" I yelled, and it obliged, releasing a wave of white-hot electrical energy. It slammed into Seviper which was toppled, crackling with what looked like an electrical whip, which was wrapped tightly around its slender body. "Mareep, use Thundershock!" I bellowed. Mareep cried out and shook its coat. A clap of thunder rang out and a streak of lightning smashed into the struggling Seviper. It absorbed the blow, wriggling helplessly. Ox looked worried. I laughed triumphantly.  
Suddenly, Seviper was surrounded in a red light and disappeared. I gasped at looked up to see Kalina standing at Ox's side. Her face was hard to read. A mixture of impressed and worried? Next to her, Ox looked downright miserable.  
Kalina nodded at me and took Ox's arm. Leading him back to the fireplace, she sat him down and looked into the flames. I walked over to Mareep, which was looking up at me. "Well done you," I laughed scratching it's wiry fleece. I bleated and nuzzled my leg, sending gentle pins and needles coursing through my body. I lead it back to Kalina and the two kids and it lay next to the fire lazily, enjoying the warmth.  
Sitting opposite Kalina, I looked into her emerald eyes. She looked back into mine, and a small smile twitched on her face.  
"Not bad, Zen." She whispered the sentence. "Not bad at all."

The night drew on and I recalled Mareep as the fire died.  
Ox and the girl remained silent as I tried not fall asleep and topple into the ashy remains.  
Kalina sat, thoughtful. Suddenly, a crunch of footsteps snapped her out of her trance. She whipped around to face a tall, slender man. He was dressed in tight-fitting clothes which accented his every bone. Tight jeans hugged his trousers and a t-shirt hung off his skinny frame.  
He had long auburn hair and a whisper of a beard lining his jaw. His eyes were warm but his mouth remained cold.  
He looked at Kalina. "So," his voice was warm and thick, like hot chocolate with too much powder. "We meet again, after all these years"  
Kalina nodded. He smirked. "Took your time didn't you sis?" He sat next to the children. Shock slapped my senses. _Sis?  
_"Wait," I blurted involuntarily. "You guys, are _related_?" Kalina and the man looked at me. He nodded slowly, unsure. "Who's he?"  
Kalina shook her head, waving me away. "Doesn't matter yet. Cedar, I need your help."  
The man, or Cedar now, rolled his eyes. Cuffing Ox gently on the back of the head, he stood up. "Why does my son look so miserable Kalina?"  
Kalina answered, truthfully. "He just lost against him." Pointing at me, I squirmed awkwardly as Cedar set his eyes upon me. His stare was lingering, and I felt like he was almost visually undressing me. I glared at him and he averted his eyes back to Kalina's.  
Sighing, he shook his head. "What do you need?"  
Kalina pointed at the girl. "I need her." Cedar snorted.  
"I bet you do, is that because you need a shopping partner?" Kalina glowered.  
"No Cedar, it's because we both know what she can do. And I need all the help I can get at the moment." Cedar frowned and looked accusingly at his sister. "No." He delivered his verdict firmly. "You're not taking my daughter." Kalina smirked, obviously frustrated but holding it back.  
"I thought you'd say that," she muttered.  
Shifting his weight, Cedar stood awkwardly, but defiantly. Kalina sighed out loud before trying again.  
"_Look_ Cedar, I'm not asking you because you're family." Cedar raised an eyebrow.  
"Okay, well I _am _a bit," Kalina conceded before continuing. "But I need her because I have to get to Goldenrod City by-" She flicked her eyes to me and I tried to act uninterested. I failed miserably; she knew my interest was there.  
Moving towards Cedar, they engaged in a heated whispery argument. I frowned, worried.  
Finally Cedar sighed. Nodded his head, and turned to the girl, and gently rested his hand on her shoulder. "Serisa, your aunt is going to take you on a little trip, okay?" No response. Cedar bowed his head.  
Ox, who had heard the entire discussion, stood up sharply, clumsily. "Wait!" His eyes looked confused. He looked at Kalina. "_We're _related?" Kalina nodded. "So why didn't you say so?" He asked her sharply. Kalina shrugged. "I never expected to see you." She said the words with no emotion, but her eyes shone, even without light. I realised they were white tears, welling up and drying instantly against the smoky air. Her voice remained firm. "But, I can give you this if you forget about me." She held out a pokéball. Cedar shook his head sharply, but Kalina shrugged him off. Ox looked confused.  
"Okay..." He stepped forward and took the ball out of her hand. Flicking his eyes to his father and Kalina, he muttered under his breath. I caught the remains. _'one crazy family...'  
_He threw the ball into the night but it didn't flash open. It clicked open, shallow and empty. Kalina sighed.  
"It for you to catch one with, Ox."  
Ox scouted the ground for his ball. "But, wait... I'm not getting Seviper?"  
Even Kalina laughed at that. "No, you're not," she said firmly. "You're too young to be controlling _that_. Go and catch a Pidgey or something." Cedar smiled but his eyes remained worried. His hand remained on Serisa's shoulder, who continued reading, mute. Face hidden in the darkness. Her tiny hands gripped the book.  
"You'll look after her, won't you?" He was like Kalina, I noticed. Asked his questions like he was giving an order.  
"Haven't I always?" Another statement twisted into a question. It remained unanswered.  
Cedar rubbed his eyes.  
"Well, you'd better camp here." He motioned to the tents. "You're welcome to kip for a couple of hours. I mean, what is it now..." He glanced at his watch. "It's just gone past midnight. I've still got some work to do, so if you stay here and look after the kids, I'll get back in four hours or so and see you off." Kalina nodded.  
"Okay..." Cedar's hand remained on Serisa's shoulder, his face torn. She didn't look up. He sighed, heavy and shallow.  
"Can I go and catch a pokémon now dad?" Ox's question barged in from the distance. Cedar chuckled.  
"No," he shouted, rubbing his eyes again. His face had given in, and tears criss-crossed each other like little pathways. Fatigue was brushed under his eyes. He looked like a moving corpse.  
Ox protested but slouched back before sitting on the log and staring at the ball.  
Serisa hummed tonelessly under her breath.

I looked at Kalina, who motioned to Serisa.  
I looked at her and was surprised to see she had taken her eyes of the book and was staring hard at me. Now, I saw her face and my suspicions were confirmed. Her eyes were completely black. She looked possessed by evil but still held the face of an innocent young girl.  
My skin prickled as I fell into her eyes. They stared back and swallowed me, two black holes of nothing.  
My head started to droop, senses blurred.  
My head screamed at me to get up but I couldn't move. Couldn't avert my gaze. Her eyes continued to probe mine.  
I felt like my mind was being unscrewed like a bottle top. It fizzed as it was twisted by her small hand.  
My whole head tingled painfully. My nose started to run. A small cold finger pressed on the edge of my subconscious and my arm jerked involuntarily.  
"That's _enough_." Kalina muttered sharply.  
Serisa giggled, a sweet melodic tune, and returned her eyes to her book. I caught myself just, suddenly thrown back into reality.  
My heart beat slowly, my head ached. Pushing myself away Serisa, I stumbled into the tent next to where Ox sat, half asleep and unaware of what just happened. I collapsed into the blankets and ignored everything. Tried to forget it.  
My thoughts made a welcome reappearance.  
_That did not happen, that did not happen. Relax Zen, you imagined it. Ignore it.  
_I relaxed, an even allowed a giggle. _That's right Zen, it's all made up. You're just so damn tired, that's all.  
_I heard voices outside.  
Kalina was continuing to mutter at Serisa. I looked out past the tent flaps and focused on her eyes again, hating myself for doing so.  
I had to know if it was real or not. _Of course it wasn't Zen, you're just so damn tired. _

I was wrong. I saw her eyes.  
Completely blackened, they gaped and swallowed the words up. I choked on my breath.  
Fear surged through me. I shook. Kalina continued to mutter  
Serisa's face remained still, but her features were sharpened into an ugly scorn. She looked like a hybrid of angel and demon.  
Thin, sharp lips twisted the face of a pretty little girl into an evil face.  
A twisted mistake of good and bad.  
My head ached.

I fell into the tent again, and tried to force myself to sleep.  
A whisper fell into my ear seconds later, tinny and sweet.  
_'Don't worry, I won't hurt you.'_

I shouted and jumped up. I looked around, arms raised, hands balled into fists. No-one was there.  
Just me and the blankets.  
Outside, I heard a melody of giggles escape from Serisa's lips again.  
Kalina continued to mutter.  
_  
I won't hurt you._


	14. Flyover man

I slept fitfully, loosely detached shuffled in my head like playing cards slithering across a wooden table.  
Hearts and clubs clashed. Jokers giggled, tinny and sweet.  
I woke with a start, one eye jumped open before I sat up, looked out of the tent and inhaled the morning.  
The sky was painted a watery shade of blue, with grey smoky streaks of cloud drifting lazily. It wasn't warm nor cold.  
I coughed as I breathed in too much of the musty canvas smell of the tent. I unfolded, and stepped outside.  
Serisa was sitting on the bench, reading.  
My heart skipped.  
It all came rushing back. A cold finger, stirring my thoughts. Big, black eyes. A devious twisted smile.  
"Good morning Zen," Kalina had stepped up behind me, and I whipped around startled. She was dressed in typical morning.  
Messy hair. Wrinkled, dry lips. Her eyes remained forever green and strong. A curl of sleep twisted down her face.  
"Morning," I croaked, voice harsh. She smiled. "Better not be mocking me," she mumbled as she gently pushed past me.  
Sitting down next to Serisa, she looked at me, a slightly slanted look on her face.  
"Are you okay, Zen?" I stared at Serisa and nodded. Her eyes ate the pages in front of her. No movement, a statue.  
"Why is she like that?" I asked the question firmly, but inside I was peeling. I shook my head gently, trying to relinquish my guard that I had raised on first sight of the demon child. A small slither of wind kissed my ears. Cold and gentle, it made me flinch.  
Kalina shook her head. "It doesn't matter why she is like she is." She stroked Serisa's hair. The girl coughed and turned the page.  
"She is who she is." Kalina looked at me, eyes angry. I didn't push.  
Standing up sharply, she picked up her jacket which lay crumpled on the floor. "We need to go anyway." Her lips were still dry.  
"Cedar came back took Ox on a job and said we're good to go whenever. So let's go. We have work to do."  
I nodded lamely and ducked back into the tent, grabbing my satchel. Outside, Kalina tried to get Serisa a bit more focused.  
"Come on sweetie," she whispered, without affection. A quiet order. Serisa continued reading oblivious.  
Kalina gently held the corner and pulled it away from the child. A small snarl bubbled from Serisa's lips and her bared her teeth.  
The hairs on my arms prickled. Kalina remained unmoved and held the book firmly.  
"Serisa," she said her name firmly and loudly. "We need to _go_." Serisa continued to growl but let go of the book. Snapping her head up to Kalina's, their eyes meet and Kalina's leg suddenly kicked out involuntarily. I seized up, bracing a mental attack too.  
But the girl wasn't interested in me. She stood up now, as Kalina struggled to control her leg, which was going heavily into spasm.  
It looked like a cartoon scene. Her leg twisted and moved inhumanely, and Kalina growled in pain and determination to win the mental fight. Her eyes glowed green. Serisa had an evil smile stitched on her face, and her black eye twinkled with childlike malice.  
Her hands shook and she and Kalina battled it out.  
I stood numbly, scared and unmoved. But embarrassingly intrigued.  
Kalina's leg started to stiffen as she clenched her fists, fighting against the attack on her mind. Sweat poured down her face and her voicebox played a mix of gutteral moans and grunts as she struggled with the effort. Serisa however, stood completely still and unfazed. The smile was still jammed on her face. Teeth shone.  
Suddenly, Kalina's leg slammed into place. A quick blur and Serisa now held the book. The smile had vanished.  
A quick turn and the demon child walked slowly to her tent to collect her things. Kalina struggled to control her breathing.  
Her leg shook.

"I'm sorry," I tried to sound sincere but shock still rang in my voice. And admiration for Kalina's effort.  
However, she brushed the apology away. "Forget it," she said, breathing hard. "I'll need to get used to it."  
I choked on the air. "_Why_?" I dreaded asking the question. Kalina allowed a sarcastic laugh.  
"She's not human," she said simply. "She's something _else_." I shivered and opened my mouth to ask what she was if she wasn't one of us. But Serisa had appeared next to us. Kalina remained silent. The child curled her lip and cracked her knuckles.  
Motioning with her head, she summoned us to get moving. Stepping gingerly, Kalina started walking.  
We passed more tents as we headed for the winding path which lead to Violet City.  
By map, it was supposed to talk a thirty minute walk at a good speed. However, that time was doubled due to Kalina's hesitance to put her weight fully down on her leg. She walked briskly, but every third of fourth step jerked as she exceeded her comfort.  
Her leg had been bent at an ureal angle, but it hadn't snapped. One wrong step and it could very well. Serisa knew this, her smile had made an ugly reappearance. Her book was glued to her side and her black eyes observed her surroundings. I only looked at her fleetingly. I valued my body parts.  
The road ahead took a sharp left, and on the corner stood the giant cave I spotted from on top of the boulders.  
It was a huge rocky base, with plants and wildlife growing on it in their numbers. Toadstools peeked out from cracks. As we approached further, I spotted an insect struggling in a web. A spider was fast approaching.  
Serisa moved fluidly to the insects aid and rescued it. I smiled but it was cut short as the child clapped her hands together. Releasing them, I saw the remains of the bug, mashed into her palms as a gooey green mess. Kalina looked on, stony giggled before wiping the insect remains on the side of the cave. The spider followed the scent and started to eat.  
I looked away, digusted. Kalina turned away too but only to scout the surroundings ahead. In my peripherals, I saw Serisa lick her fingers. I turned away fully, fighting the urge to vomit.  
"Violet City is through this field," she said. Looking, I saw the gravel turn to green. A huge grassy wasteland sprawled in front of us.  
Dotted with colourful flowers and tall leafy plants, the field also held several people.  
To the left of us, a group had set up camp. The smell of meat salted the air as they cooked on an open fire. My stomach rumbled. I hadn't had breakfast. To the left, a small girl sat, making daisy chains. Serisa stared at her with interest.  
Two adults, presumably the girl's parents, sat a little distance away, talking and laughing.  
In the distance, a plume of dust confirmed a battle was taking place. A sharp cry scratched the air as the creatures clashed. I craned my neck, trying to spot what they were. But the dust proved to be a frustrating veil.  
We stepped into the field and started walking. Serisa kept her eyes locked on the girl, and I couldn't help but stare at her as we continued walking. Her black eyes flicked and rolled in her head as she seemed to scout every inch of the sitting child.  
Her nostrils flared. Kalina walked on, rubbing her leg.  
Suddenly, Serisa's eyes drained of their blackness and turned the most incredible shade of blue. I jumped and tugged Kalina's arm, pointing at the change. "Kalina, _look_!"  
Serisa had stopped and was staring ahead, a puzzled look on her face. Her eyes sparkled, an ocean colour. Kalina ran to her, instantly ignoring her leg. "Serisa, sweetie," she rushed out the words, a panicked look splashed across her usually calm and emotionless face. Her voice was thick with worry. "Serisa, talk to me!"  
Serisa blinked, her blue eyes moist. Her voice broke into a melodic tune.  
"W-What's going on?" She stammered, head snapping in different directions as she tried to focus on her surroundings. Her face was glowing with upturned puzzlement. "Why am I not in Lavender..." Suddenly Serisa's head rolled forward and Kalina cried out.  
Serisa garbled and shook and when she snapped her head back, her eyes were black once again.  
She bared her teeth and Kalina was thrown through the air as if she was nothing more than a rag doll.  
I yelled out angrily and threw myself towards Serisa whose eyes were narrowed. She held out a palm and I slammed into a wall. Except I couldn't see it. My head smacked into an invisible force and Serisa rested her hand on my head.  
I tried to move away but my body was trapped in an invisible harness. I could only breathe and look on helplessly as Serisa's black eyes swallowed mine up. I tried to squeeze my eyes shut but small invisible fingertips dug their sharp ends into them and pulled my eyelids up. I screamed in fear and I felt the dreaded cold finger drum on the edge of my mind.  
Suddenly, I my muscles relaxed and I could move. Kalina had come to her senses and bundled Serisa over.  
The child snarled as she harmlessly ploughed into the soft grass. A quick blur and she was standing, arms outstretched. Her palms shone a soft shade of red.  
"That's _enough_!" A sharp voice cut through the air and Serisa snapped her head at the sound of it.  
Standing opposite her and the spread-eagled Kalina stood a young man, dressed in blue karate attire. His hair was dyed a deep watery blue and his eyes were narrowed on Serisa's. His voice was rich with power and in an instant, the child had vanished.  
A small plume of dust rose and settled as she disappeared. The man walked over to Kalina, stepping over me in the process.  
As he did so, his eyes locked on mine fleetingly before focusing back on Kalina.  
He helped her up, and a small bubble of a laugh rose out of mouth.  
"Well well Kalina, still looks like you can't keep any control on her," he offered a shoulder of support but Kalina pushed him away.  
"Shut up Faulkner," she whispered teasingly, before wincing in pain as she cracked her back. Her black jacket shone with grass innards.  
The young man winked and quickly jumped to help me up. "Thanks," I muttered, rather miffed that he had managed to stop Serisa with a single word. I went all out and almost ended up with a concussion.  
"I'm Faulkner, I'm sure you've heard," the young man bowed slightly. "I'm also one of Kalina's closest friends." He looked at her, and she smiled shyly at him. I pursed my lips. "And you are my friend?" I looked at him suspiciously.  
"I'm Zen. Sorry, but she's never mentioned you," I said casually. His smile broadened.  
"Now is _that_ true?" He laughed, poking Kalina's ribs gently. She smirked and pushed him away, a slight blush opening out on her cheeks. I was surprised to feel a small touch of jealously flitter in my stomach. I thought back to Susii and how we flirted. A bittersweet memory.  
"_Regardless_," Faulkner sure was a cheery fellow. "I will be your first true challenge to win _this._" He offered a box to me and I took it. Clicking it open, I observed the contents.

A small metal badge rested lightly on the padded interior of the box.  
It was arched thickly into the shape of a horseshoe, tipped at the end with feather-like touches. Like a pair of thick bent wings, it gleamed proudly in the sun. Faulkner laughed again.  
"Yup, breathe it in," he said and grabbed the box off me, closing it with a click.  
Kalina smiled at him, biting her lip. His blue hair waved in the breeze as he led us through the field, chatting away.  
I was more concerned about Serisa's disappearance. I interrupted him mid-sentence to ask why they weren't bothered about her fleeing.  
"She's done it too many times." Kalina waved away concerns, eagerly listening to Faulkner's waffle. I didn't like him very much, even if he was a gym leader. His badge looked like wings, which meant he owned flying pokémon. I felt the pokéball in my satchel, smiling at my little weapon. He wouldn't stand a chance.  
A few people waved at Faulkner as we exited the field and followed a small tarmac path into the town. Brick buildings were glued together, and a small Pokémon Centre hid among the houses.  
Trainers of all shapes and sizes passed, some stopped and challenging Faulkner to a battle.  
"Not today," he laughed to them, "Tomorrow. Or the day after." They all nodded eagerly.  
"Still got too much time on your hands Faulkner?" Kalina teased. "Surely you're bored of beating all of these amateurs." Faulkner laughed, full and rich. He shook his head.  
"It's great," he smiled, kicking at the curb as we crossed a road. "I get to be their first big battle, and to be honest, I like it when they win." I shook my head in disbelief.  
"You like losing?" I asked, smirking. Faulkner shrugged. "Is it really a loss if they gain something so great?" He asked the question into the wind which I was grateful for. I had no answer.  
A big building rest at the top of the town, with a metal pokéball sign stuck to its towering roof. "My Gym," Faulkner smiled. "My baby."  
I shrugged. "It's okay," I muttered under my breath, trying to ignore Kalina's smile. She pulled ahead with Faulkner, who lapped up the attention.  
"This is where you'll be battling me someday Zen," Faulkner said cheerily, glancing at me over his shoulder. I bristled.  
"How about _now_?" I asked, berating myself for being so aggressive. I wanted to wipe the smile of his face.  
It didn't work. His grin widened and he flashed a look at Kalina.  
"_Actually_," he poked Kalina again who gently slapped him off. "I was hoping to battle this fine lady." Kalina looked at him surprised.  
"Me?" She swooned in mock surprise. "Why on earth would the great Faulkner want to battle _me_?" Faulkner laughed.  
It was so cute it was sickening. Kalina had transformed into a teenage girl.  
Faulkner was the stud. I was the younger brother.

We stepped inside the gym and my feet touched straw which lined the hard wooden floors.  
A thick smell hung in the air and small droppings were swept into the corner. Faulkner glanced at them uneasily.  
"Heh, sorry about that," he laughed apologetically. "They were supposed to be tidied up." I shrugged.  
The rest of the gym was pretty neat, I had to admit. A huge wooden stage stood at the top of some steps. Stained glass windows symmetrically adorned the walls, allowing a kaleidoscope of different coloured air stream in. Light purples bounced off strong greens as they took the rainbow stage.  
I hung back and watched.  
"Hey Zen," Faulkner called to me. I looked up. "This is what you could be facing one day, when you're good enough."  
Kalina laughed out loud, I glared as he threw me a cheeky grin. I grabbed my pokéball and walked towards the stage, intending to throw Mareep into battle and blast him and his pokémon to high heaven.  
"Go, Zapdos!" He threw a black coloured pokéball in front of him and a huge swathe of electricity exploded as it flew open. The saliva on my tongue fizzed as static ripped through my body. Struggling to stand, I dropped my ball back in my satchel and shielded my eyes as huge bolts of lightning erupted from the ball.  
The roar of the capsule opening blew Kalina over but she was quickly back on her feet, a huge smile on her face.  
"No _way!_" She screamed over the electric storm. "You finally caught it?" Faulkner nodded excitedly.  
The storm subsided as quickly as it had started and flapping in midair stood a majestic yellow bird. Razor sharp jagged wings cut the air, screeching against invisible dust particles and pockets. Its spiky feathers made it look like it was made of lightning itself. Its tail feathers stuck out in several jagged directions, furthering the illusion. A large crest of sharp yellow feathers decorated its head, and angry slanted white eyes hid under dark shadows. Its beak, although very long and thin, looked just as sharp and it powerful as the rest of it.  
I felt the confidence leak out of me. Kalina threw out Mismagius, still laughing in awe of the creature.  
"Mismagius!" she screamed, her voice echoing off the walls. "Use Sha-  
"- Zapdos, _Thunder_!" Faulkner shouted over her, teasingly flicking her off.  
The bird screeched ferociously, and it sparkled with white hot electric power.  
A huge blast knocked me off me feet as the windows smashed with an ear-splitting shatter. The roof was also smashed open as an angry jagged streak of electricty cracked through Kalina's ghost pokémon. It wailed and faded into nothing. Kalina held out her pokéball and returned it. Stepping gingerly around the huge bird, she laughed again and high-fived the grinning Faulkner.  
"I can't believe you caught it!" She cried out. Faulkner nodded excitedly.  
"Only took three weeks," he said sarcastically, winking at me. I tried to smile but couldn't. I stood up and fumbled with my pockets awkwardly. Inwardly, I was wrecked. _How are you going to beat this thing, Zen?  
_Faulkner, as if reading my thoughts, answered me.  
"Don't worry Zen, you won't be battling Zapdos tomorrow." I looked up just time to catch one more glimpse of the majestic bird before it was returned. "Maybe Moltres or Articuno..." Faulkner tailed off and burst into a fit of laughter as Kalina punched his arm.  
"Don't be mean!" She giggled before turning to me.  
"Zen, Faulkner will be using three pokémon against you tomorrow but they won't be anywhere near the level Zapdos is." I nodded, embarrassed that I only had a Mareep to my name. He had that. That thing.  
"Hey Zen," Faulkner snapped me out of my misery. "I've hooked you and Kalina up with a place to stay. Our battle is tomorrow, 7am sharp."  
I nodded, still worried. Kalina clapped her hands excitedly. It was strange to see her so animated.  
Faulkner stepped forward off the stage.  
"Don't worry man," he offered a friendly slap on the back as a calm down technique. I almost threw up.  
He laughed.

"Just bring your A-game Zen," he said, walking past me with Kalina in tow.  
"Do your best, and we'll have a good battle.""  
I gripped my pokéball.  
_I'll give him a good battle alright._

The broken glass winked at me from the floor.


	15. Velvet friendship

I was introduced to the room I would be sleeping with.  
Kalina told me she was going to dinner with Faulkner and would be back later. Small punches of red rested on her cheeks. I glared at her in mock jealously. She batted me away and flounced off to her date.  
The owner of the house I was staying in was away at work and I tried to find something to do.  
I ended up sitting in the kitchen, chewing on a hard green fruit I found sitting in a bowl. I was fed up.  
The night sky was slowly bleeding into the blue and a waxy purple colour spilled on the skyline. The moon, premature in its arrival, glowed faintly above. The air smelt of fruit and approaching evening.  
Suddenly, I heard the door click open, and footsteps were rubbed hard into a rug in the hallway.  
I stayed seating. The footsteps got louder as the feet they were stuck to moved to the kitchen doorway. But it wasn't the homeowner which entered the kitchen and set their eyes upon me. Surely not, he was too young. Wasn't he?  
It was a guy, who looked my age. He was dressed smartly, maybe slightly too lavishly for the situation he walked into.  
A velvet green jacket flowed over a light mint green shirt. A black shiny belt held light purple trousers up, showing turned up brown boots. A cane was in his hand, embellished with a fancy fox figurehead. It stubbed on the floor as he looked at me.  
A small patch of prickly hair poked from his chin, and his face was sharp. He had green eyes, but less intense than Kalina's. Short scruffy hair. And a voice, rich with Victorian essence.  
"Hello," he offered his hand. I shook it awkwardly. "My name's Griff." He said his words pleasantly. They fell lightly on the table.  
"Zen." I took a crunch of the berry. It tasted sweet yet had a bitter aftertaste. Griff frowned, a small smile smeared on his lips.  
"You know you're eating a Lum Berry," he said matter-of-factly, his voice glittering with amusement. I shrugged.  
"They're for your Pokémon," he said calmly. His voice was scraped with an eloquent twang. It was oddly reassuring. I looked at the fruit in disgust. "No way! But it's huge!" The fleshy bite mark oozed clear juice. I felt a bit sick.  
Griff laughed again and took it from me, tossing it back into the bowl on the side. Resting his cane on the fridge, he leant against the side. "So Zen," he looked at me again. "Why are you here?"  
I looked at him dumbly. "Faulkner said I could stay here for the night." Griff nodded.  
"But why are you _really _here?" He asked it with earnest. I felt like I was in a counselling session.  
_Well I'm here against my will really, trapped and forced to travel with this amazingly scray woman. I've had my thoughts opened up by a demon child, witness a bird almost electrocute the world, lost Susii and Zoya and I still only have one pokémon to my name. Does that answer your question Griff?__  
_I shrugged, ignoring the words which were spread on my tongue. "Just, to journey I guess." Griff shook his head.  
"That's not true." I glared at him. He looked smug.  
"You're here because you want to win the world." A sigh hid behind his posh voice. I questioned it and he shook his head again.  
"Doesn't matter buddy," I frowned, surprised at how friendly he was after a few exchanged sentences. He continued, unaware. "I want to win this world too, but I'm nowhere near it." He rubbed an itch from his nose and whistled through his teeth.  
"Have you got a pokémon?" I asked and he nodded. "What have you got?"  
"A Hydreigon," he said the creature's name casually. My stomach lurched, it sounded powerful. "What is it?" I asked, trying to maks the worried look which was grabbling with my face.  
"It's a dragon pokémon," he was smiling now. "It's a dark dragon actually. From the Unova world." I felt the familiar curse of confused feelings seep into my mind. "Uno- wha?" He laughed and sat down opposite me.  
"Right," he placed a finger on the table. "This is us." I nodded.  
He moved his finger to the right. "This is Kanto." I nodded, pretending to understand. My brain mentally scrabbled for a pen and paper to write his words to my memory. He moved his finger up.  
"This is Sinnoh." A movement to the left. "And Hoenn." A diagonal movement. "Johto." A fraction right. "This is Unova." Straight line left. "And Kalos." My memory slammed the pen on the table. The ink had run dry.  
Griff studied me shortly, before tapping his finger on the table. "Where's this?" he asked, his posh voice rich with a stern teaching tone. I frowned.  
"Kazos."  
"_Kal_os," he stressed, before moving his finger. "And here?"  
"Sinnoh?"  
"Wrong. Johto. Where we are." I nodded, my mind tripping over itself.  
"Tell you what Zen, I'll write it out for you." I looked at him gratefully. "Thanks," I mumbled.  
"No worries." He stood up. "It's still a bit light." He craned his neck to see more of the sky. "How about we go and battle a kid?"  
I laughed involuntarily, surprised at how he phrased the question. He grinned, his sharp face alight.  
"Come on."

We walked back to the field Serisa disappeared in.  
The night was fast approaching, but shapes moved in the distance. Griff grinned.  
Quickening our pace, we approached a group of teenagers. They were sitting on a mound of dirt, joking about something unimportant. Griff spoke to the biggest one. "Hey my friend, fancy a battle?" The kid grinned.  
He had a small cluster of pimples grouped next to his nose. His eyes were sharp but his nose was flat and blunt, like a river stone. His voice was near to being guttural.  
"Yeah, o'right then mate." Pushing himself up, he cast a glance back to his friends, who were snickering. "Go on, Arex!" One of the called out to the teen, who flicked them off.  
I looked at Griff, who was smiling broadly. Stepping up to the group, he muttered something under his breath to them. They instantly stopped laughing and looked at Arex, worried. I supressed a laugh.  
Griff winked at Arex, who looked confident. Walking away from him, he spun around with a clumsy twirl, his jacket flailing in the wind like a palm tree in the wind. Pulled out a pokéball, which glittered in the cold moonlight which poured down on us.  
Arex threw his ball first.  
A flash erupted from the ball, and in its place stood a stumpy, light grey-purple creature. Its pronounced lower jaws dripped with thick saliva. Two small fangs poked out on its upper jaw. It possessed two thick ears, flat and curved in surface, and a wet black stubby nose. A scratched black collar hung loosely around its neck and two band-like black markings looked inked on its arms. It growled menacingly at Griff, who looked at with apparent delight.

"My, what a _creature!" _he said admiringly. He snapped his eyes to me as I pulled my Pokédex out. It blared out robotically. I flushed, trying to find a volume control without luck.  
_'Granbull, the Fairy Pokémon. It has extreme fighting power due to its heavily muscled jaw and its strong jaw.'__  
_I looked at Griff, confused. _Fairy?_ I mouthed, to which he nodded and looked at Arex. Throwing his ball into the ring, it burst open with a low growl. A huge dragon pokémon slithered onto the field, fur bristling. Arex's face dropped. His friends let out a collective gasp. It was a magnificent creature.  
Six thin, black wings were on its back, each ending in two razor sharp points. It's fur was patterned into fuchsia-colored flower-like collar which opened to its evil looking head, which was a dark blue.  
Its sharp slanted eyes were coloured black with fuchsia pupils. Its hands, also black, harbored an evil looking head on each one; also blue with black eyes. They screeched and hissed weakly.  
Its feet were a bit of a weird case, having no claws or defined soles. Just two or three small toes.  
The Pokédex screamed out again.  
_Hydreigon, the brutal pokémon. It uses its six wings to travel the skies. It will attack anything that moves, seeing it as an opponent.__  
_Griff laughed out loud, nodding in agreement. I smiled weakly.  
"Right," he said, still smiling. "Arex is it?" The teen nodded weekly. "Let's go!"

Hydreigon glared at Granbull, malice glittering in its eyes. It's two hand-heads snapped at the creature, which growled back at them. It smashed its paws together. I felt the earth vibrate under my feet.  
"Granbull!" Arex shouted out, voice crackling with nerves. "Use Headbutt!"  
Granbull growled and hurled itself at Hydreigon, which screeched as Griff shouted out a command. His voice was smothered by the creature's cry, but in one swift moment, a colossal _BOOM _erupted as it brought it's hands together. Granbull clattered to the floor. Arex cried out.  
Griff looked on seriously. My stomach twisted as I realised I was associating myself with someone much more powerful than me. Frustration pricked at me. Griff watched on as Granbull jumped to its feet, dusting itself off. Scorch marks grazed its neck and it growled heavily, saliva dripping heavily from its powerful jaw.  
Griff motioned to Arex. "Your move, my fine fellow." Arex glared at him. His friends called out support.  
"Too late!" Griff yelled. "Hydreigon, use Dragon Pulse!"  
Arex returned. "Granbull, dodge it by using Dig!" Hydreigon's sharp jaw was open, a blue ball of crackling energy fizzing fiercely. A thin strip of lightning burst from it every couple of seconds. Suddenly, it exploded, shooting a sharp pulse of blue energy towards Granbull.  
"Now!" Arex screamed, and Granbull dove into the earth as if it was made of water.  
"Hydreigon," Griff shouted, face tense. "Follow it's movement!" The dragon directed it's pulse into the earth, ripping thick trenches from it until Granbull appeared, trapped. The pulse smashed into the stricken creature and it blacked out as it absorbed the energy.  
Hydreigon roared triumphantly, Arex cried out in anger.  
Returning Granbull, he strode up to Griff and pushed him hard.  
Three things happened.  
Griff stumbled backwards, catching himself from falling. Anger was slashed across his face.  
Arex turned to me next, his pig face upturned with anger, and I held up my hands defensively.  
And suddenly, he was lifted up by an invisible force. "Hydreigon, no!" Griff called out, flapping his arms. But the dragon wasn't doing anything. It was sat, awaiting Griff's next order.  
Arex cried out, clutching his head. He screamed, voice raw with strained sound and his eyes rolled back in his head.  
His legs kicked out desperately, flailing harmlessly in the air. His friends tried to run to him but slammed into an invisible wall. Two of them were knocked out cold.  
Griff glanced around frantically, eyes wide in horror and intrigue. Suddenly, it clicked.

I stepped forward, a few centimeters away from the babbling Arex. Foam bubbled at his lips as his eyes rolled further back in his head. Any more and they would have done a complete 360.  
"Serisa!" I yelled into the air, voice plagued with panicked hope that I was right. "Please, _stop_!" Arex fell to the ground in a heap, twitching. His friends felt out in front of them, pushing against air.  
Suddenly, Serisa appeared in front of me. Book in hand, her black eyes fought for the attention of mine.  
Her small plush lips were twisted into a snarl. A smile hid behind it and her eyes flashed mischievously. I closed my eyes and prepared for the onslaught. Every nerve was on edge as I braced myself for a cold unlocking.  
But a tinny whisper of a giggle kissed my ear and then nothing.  
Just breathing.  
A opened an eye. Griff stood in front of me, looking worried.  
Behind me, Arex was being dragged off by his friends. A few were crying.  
Others were slapped with shock.

Hydreigon wasn't anywhere to be seen. It must have been returned.  
Griff exhaled deeply. "Who _was_ that?" He tried to ask cheerfully but he was out of smiles.  
Cold fear shone on his face, greasy and thick.  
I sighed. "That was Serisa." I sat on the spot."  
Griff continued standing. "She spoke to you. Did you hear her?"  
I snapped my eyes to his. "No," I tried to think back. Just black. "What did she say?"  
Griff looked at me, eyes shining with concern.  
"She said your something about your mother." He tailed off awkwardly.  
"_What _did she say Griff?" I shouted desperately. I tried to stand up but I was too tired.  
Fear shook through my voice. "What did she say?"  
Griff struggled with his voice.  
"She said..." A cough. I glared at him.

"She said, 'Your mother isn't there.'"  
In the distance, the moon flickered.


End file.
